NEW DELHI, 9 October 2003 — An influential Muslim body yesterday challenged in an Indian court an archaelogical report which indicated there were the ruins of a temple beneath a destroyed 16th century mosque.
The Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency quoted Zaffaryab Jilani, a lawyer for the Sunni Central Waqf Board, who said the objections were also filed on behalf of two other contesting Muslim parties, Haji Mahboob and Hashim Ansari.
In August the Archaelogical Survey of India (ASI) said in a report a 10th-century temple with Hindu carvings existed under the rubble of the Babri mosque in the northern Indian town of Ayodhya.
The mosque was razed by Hindus in 1992 sparking nationwide riots. Hindus have renewed their demand for handover of the disputed religious site following the archaelogical report. The dispute over the religious site is in the hands of the courts, which had ordered the excavations.
A bench of the Allahabad High Court in northern India had given the contesting parties six weeks to file objections.
Meanwhile, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) contended yesterday that the issue of constructing a Ram temple at Ayodhya should not be decided by a court but by the people.
“It should be settled by the society and the country,” said Acharya Dharmendra at a press conference in Bhopal.
“The construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya is an issue of national importance, above the jurisdiction of the courts. The VHP believes courts should not interfere with the issue,” said Dharmendra.
