Advani, who visited the Somnath temple here along with former party leader Uma Bharti, said he was not able to understand the apex court's decision to grant interim stay till Sept. 28 on the Allahabad High Court's pronouncement of verdict on the Ayodhya dispute. The high court was to deliver its verdict on the Babri Masjid-Ramjanmabhoomi title suit on Sept. 24.

"I appeal to the Supreme Court that the countrymen have been waiting for the judgment in the case for the last 50 years. I urge the court to take up the matter on Sept. 28 and get the judgment delivered through this bench (of the Allahabad High Court)," Advani told reporters.

Advani said he respected the judicial system of the country and added that he had appealed to party workers to maintain calm.

He said people were waiting for the court's decision on Ayodhya, and litigants too wanted a verdict and the Allahabad High Court had rejected the petition to defer the verdict.

Advani visits Somnath temple every year on Sept. 25 since he took out a yatra from the place to Ayodhya in 1990 culminating in the vandalism that saw the demolition of the Babri Mosque in 1992.