Build temple on disputed Ayodhya site, Masjid a little away: Shia Waqf Board

The Uttar Pradesh Shia Waqf Board on Tuesday filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court saying a mosque can be built in a Muslim-dominated area maintaining a reasonable distance from Lord Ram's birth place in Ayodhya.

Filing an affidavit, the Shia Waqf Board said closeness of places of worship "should be avoided in as much as both denominations using loudspeakers tend to disturb religious performance of each other, often leading to conflicts and acrimony in the two factions".

"To bring a quietus to the issue, Masjid can be located in a Muslim-dominated area at a reasonable distance from the most revered place of birth of Maryada Purushottam Sri Ram," it added.

The Shia Waqf Board contended that the Sunni Waqf Board has no stake in the case since the mosque was a Shia property.

"Since Babri Masjid was a Shia Waqf, only Shia Central Waqf board, Uttar Pradesh, is entitled to negotiate and arrive at a peaceful settlement with other remaining stakeholders," the affidavit stated.

The Shia Board also suggested that a panel headed by a retired Supreme Court judge and all stakeholders should find an amicable solution to the Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid dispute.

The committee should also include nominees from the Prime Minister's Office and the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's Office, and make suggestions and proposals for amicable settlement, affidavit said.

The Supreme Court has constituted a three-judge bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra to hear a batch of petitions challenging the Allahabad High Court verdict in the Ayodhya land dispute case from August 11.

The bench, whose other members are Justice Ashok Bhushan and Justice Abdul Nazeer, would adjudicate the dispute over ownership of Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid land.

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court in 2010 had said the land should be partitioned equally among three parties -- the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla.