Hope SC will base decision on 1991 Act: Congress

As the Supreme Court began hearing in the Gyanvapi Mosque case following claims that a Shivling was spotted in its premises, the Congress said it hoped that the apex court will base its approach to the dispute on the 1991 Places of Worship Act as it had decided in its verdict in the Ayodhya case.

The 1991 Act affirmed that status quo since August 15, 1947, will be maintained with respect to all places of worship, with the sole exception of the Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid dispute which had been pending before the courts at the time.

"The Gyanvapi matter is in court. But the status of all mosques, temples and other spaces of religious worship in 1947 had to be maintained as such. Thus a law too was made regarding it, the Places of Worship Act 1991. However, a few are trying to divide the people," Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha, said in Bengaluru.

All India Congress Committee spokesman Ajay Maken said everybody had welcomed the Supreme Court order on the Ayodhya dispute based on the 1991 Places of Worship Act and that he hoped for a similar approach in the Gyanvapi case as well. However, he alleged that the BJP was raking up the mosque dispute to divert public attention from surging inflation, unemployment and other issues arising out of the administrative and policy failures of the BJP government.