Ex-NCM chief Wajahat Habibullah says Ayodhya verdict 'deeply flawed', favours review

Terming the Supreme Court's Ayodhya verdict "deeply flawed", former National Commission for Minorities chief Wajahat Habibullah on Monday favoured a review of the judgment, saying that it could have legal implications in the future.

Habibullah, who was also India's first chief information commissioner, said the Supreme Court ruling tries to address the concerns of the two communities.

"I feel that the verdict is deeply flawed. I would not call the verdict constructive, but it is not a destructive verdict either. In the sense that it tries to address the concerns of the two major communities," he told PTI.

"It has held for example that the destruction of the mosque was illegal... and that is very important. They also recognised that the Hindus also have a stake, though the nature of the stake, I would disagree with," said Habibullah, who was CIC from 2005-2010 and later was the NCM chief.

On National Commission for Minorities chairperson Ghayorul Hasan Rizvi's claim that Muslims are happy with the judgment, the former NCM chief said his opinion does not carry much weight with the Muslim community.

Asked about whether the Muslim side should file a review petition over the verdict, Habibullah said the Supreme Court judgment has legal implications, therefore, it would be a "good idea for the Supreme Court to have a second look".

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) had said on Saturday that it was was contemplating seeking a review of the Ayodhya verdict.

Zafaryab Jilani, a lead counsel for the Muslim parties in the Ayodhya land dispute case, has said the decision on seeking a review of the verdict would likely be taken in a meeting of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) on Sunday.

Several Muslim leaders and organisations have argued against seeking a review and called for not pursuing the matter any further.

Sources in the prominent Muslim body Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind have said it was not in favour of filing a review petition and wants the matter to end.

The Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board, one of the main litigants in the Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Masjid case, has welcomed the Supreme Court verdict and said it has no plans to challenge it.

Taking a similar line, the Shahi Imam of the Jama Masjid in Delhi, Syed Ahmed Bukhari had said the matter should not be stretched further.

Expressing satisfaction with the Supreme Court judgment in the Ayodhya case, Iqbal Ansari, one of the litigants, had also said he will not challenge it in court.

In a historic verdict, the Supreme Court on Saturday backed the construction of a Ram temple by a government trust at the disputed site in Ayodhya, and ruled that an alternative five-acre plot must be found for a mosque in the Hindu holy town.