SC dismisses plea seeking govt appointees in Ayodhya mosque trust

The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea seeking inclusion of government nominees in the Ayodhya mosque trust. The SC in its historic judgment on November 9, 2019, had given the entire 2.77 acres of land for the construction of a temple and had directed the government to hand over five-acres of land to Sunni Central Waqf Board for the construction of a mosque in Ayodhya.

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Lawyers move SC seeking govt nominees in mosque trust

Advocate Shishir Chaturvedi and Kamlesh Kumar Shukla moved the apex court seeking Sunni Muslim appointees from the Uttar Pradesh government in the trust that was set up to build a mosque and for other activities. The request came after three government nominees were included in the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra.

However, the Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Rohinton F Nariman has dismissed the public interest litigation filed by the two lawyers. The Supreme Court in its judgement had directed the inclusion of three government nominees in the trust which will be responsible for the construction and management of the Lord Ram temple in Ayodhya. However, a similar order was not issued for the five acres of land allotted for the construction of a mosque. The court remarked that the Sunni Central Waqf Board would be at liberty for use of the land.

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The Sunni Waqf Board later setup the Indo Islamic Cultural Foundation Trust to oversee the construction of a mosque, cultural and research facilities, a hospital, a library, a community kitchen and other public utility facilities on the land allotted in Dhannipur village of Ayodhya. The plea claimed that several residents in Ayodhya wanted a similar representation of Central and the state governments. The lawyers in their plea stated that government nominees would ensure "a strict vigilante and supervision to maintain public peace and to control the misuse of funds of the trust".

The plea added that the site would be visited by hundreds and the trust will receive contributions from people in India and other countries. Therefore, seeking proper management and to ensure that no malpractices or misuse of funds takes place, the lawyers moved the apex court. 

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The Ayodhya verdict 

The Constitution Bench of the SC in its verdict on November 9, 2019, awarded the entire disputed area in Ayodhya to the Hindu parties, after a 40-day marathon hearing. It directed the Centre to formulate a scheme within three months which will be responsible for building a temple. On the other hand, the SC ordered that an alternative land of 5 acres in Ayodhya would be given to the Sunni Central Waqf Board for the construction of a mosque. 

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(With ANI Inputs)

Image Credits: PTI