Supreme Court’s decision to resolve Ayodhya dispute through mediation is a welcome step in the right direction. The dispute has been going on for at least over a century now and flared up in the 80s in the last century. So much was the heat generated that it even changed India’s political map forever.
The flames singed the oldest political party, the Congress, to such an extent that it is still struggling to recover from the blow. But it’s not just the political fortunes of a few parties that were affected in the process. At stake has been the social harmony this country desperately needs to take it forward on the path of peace and growth.
The Ayodhya dispute has been the thorn in the flesh that is refusing to go away for decades. While for some people it was about who owns the piece of land, for most others, on both sides, it has been a matter of faith and belief. And the number of such people is not just a few hundreds or thousands, but millions and millions.
Thousands of lives have been lost over the dispute, much blood has flowed in the Sarayu and the damage to the social fabric has been severe. And this is where the Supreme Court’s decision of trying to look for a solution through mediation, instead of treating it as a point of law comes in.
Politicians, of all hues, have milked the dispute for vote banks. This was not an issue that should have come to the judiciary in the first place. Given the stature of some of our tallest leaders, this dispute should have been settled long ago.
Granted, there is no one solution that will please all. But at least there should have been attempts to placate fears on both sides. That did not happen and politicians kept throwing the ball in the judiciary’s court. How could a court decide where was Lord Ram was born a few thousand years ago? How far back in time can one really go to determine legal possession of the property? So the Supreme Court is absolutely right in holding the view that this is not a property dispute and should not be settled accordingly.
The judges deciding the case have realised what impact a case of this nature would have on the country’s body politic. In such a scenario, posterity should not view them as men who never gave peace a final chance before they decided the suit.
There will be fresh objections over who the apex court has chosen as mediators. But then who will be acceptable to all parties? Who will be those three persons who no one will object to? So it is imperative that we trust the SC’s wisdom in choosing the mediators and that they will do the job required of them.
It is also important to note that the SC has set a timeline for the panel for the mediation process and has asked the media not to report till it’s over. Given that the Lok Sabha polls are around the corner and the premature and sometimes haphazard reporting could lead to chaos, the gag was necessary as also the setting up of the time frame.
Like the court said a few days ago, one cannot undo what happened in the past, it’s time to heal.