Temple trust must ensure unity among people: M M Joshi

Welcoming the Supreme Court verdict in the Ayodhya land dispute case, senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi said the trust that will be responsible for the construction of a Ram temple would have to be considerate about keeping people united.

"I welcome the verdict. But the trust that will look after the construction of the Ram temple will have to be considerate about keeping intact unity among people," he told reporters here.

Terming the judgement as "historic", the veteran BJP leader said it should be accepted with an "open mind" by all communities.

In a unanimous verdict, the Supreme Court on Saturday paved the way for the construction of a Ram temple at the disputed site at Ayodhya and directed the Centre to constitute a trust within three months to build the temple.

The apex court also ruled that the Centre will allot an alternative five-acre plot to the Sunni Waqf Board for building a new mosque at a "prominent" place in the holy town in Uttar Pradesh.

In one of the most important and most anticipated judgements in India's history, a five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi put an end to the more than a century old dispute that has torn the social fabric of the nation.