SC will hear Ayodhya dispute case on August 2, extends mediation till July 31

The Supreme Court on Thursday adjourned the Ayodhya Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land title case to August 2, the next date of hearing and allowed the mediation process in the case to continue.

The decision from the bench came after former Supreme Court judge Justice (Retired) FMI Kalifulla, chairperson of the three-member mediation panel, submitted its status report before the Supreme Court.

The matter was heard by a Constitution Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and Justices SA Bobde, DY Chandrachud, Ashok Bhushan and S Abdul Nazeer.

The Supreme Court, after perusing the report, directed Mediation Committee to inform the bench of the progress made in the mediation by July 31 and said it will take a call on August 2 on whether hearing is required in the case.

On July 11, the Supreme Court bench had asked the three-member mediation panel to submit its status report by July 18.

The court was hearing the clutch of petitions that had requested the judicature to end the mediation process and hear the Ayodhya case on a daily basis. The judicature had asked the petitioners to wait for the mediation panel to submit its report.

The court had on March 8 constituted the panel, chaired by former Supreme Court judge Kalifulla, to explore the possibility of an amicable settlement to the land dispute. The panel also comprised Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and senior Madras High Court advocate Sriram Panchu.

On May 10, the court had given time till August 15 to the panel to find a solution to the dispute.

Fourteen appeals are pending before the apex court against the 2010 Allahabad High Court verdict which said the 2.77-acre disputed land in Ayodhya be equally divided among the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara, and Ram Lalla.

The 16th-century Babri Masjid was demolished on December 6, 1992.