Sibal should clear his wish to prolong Ayodhya case: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched a scathing attack on Congress leader and senior advocate Kapil Sibal saying instead of coming clear on why the latter wants Ayodhya issue to be discussed in court after 2019, he is busy clarifying who he is representing as a lawyer.

Speaking at a public rally here, the Prime Minister said, "For the last two days, a top Congress leader and an illustrious lawyer (Kapil Sibal) has been speaking. He is free to represent whoever he wants to, but why does he want to prolong the Ayodhya case when all stakeholders want an early solution? Instead of coming clear on why he wants Ayodhya matter to be discussed in court after 2019, he is busy saying whose lawyer is he."

Prime Minister Modi further asked who Sibal is representing if he is not representing Sunni Waqf Board.

"Why doesn't Congress also remove this lawyer leader?" he asked.

Further attacking former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister Modi said, "Do you know what happened in Rajkot? Dr Manmohan Singh met the press and after that the elderly Mansukh Kaka met him. He presented him a book containing the scams under the UPA. I congratulate Mansukh Kaka who spoke up for the truth and for honest governance".

Earlier on Thursday, Sibal clarified he was appearing for petitioner Mohammed Hashmi's son Iqbal Hashmi in the Ayodhya dispute case and not for the Sunni Waqf Board in the Supreme Court.

While doing so, the Congress leader made the documents of the Supreme Court public and asked Prime Minister Modi if he thought the chief justice of India (CJI) was wrong.

"I was appearing for petitioner Mohd Hashmi's son Iqbal Hashmi, which is clearly stated in the order by the CJI. Does PM think CJI order was wrong?" Sibal told the reporters.

Further stressing on the issue, Sibal said as far as the matter of the Ram Temple was concerned, it would be built when Lord Rama wants it to be built.

"Where it will built, where not all this thing is upto Lord Rama. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not going to build it. This is not a national agenda as to which court I am going to appear. This is not a national issue," he said.

This clarification of his has come in the wake of the board distancing itself from his yesterday's statement in the court wherein he demanded for the next hearing to be held only in July 2019 after the completion of the next Lok Sabha polls, citing political ramifications.