Ayodhya Dispute: Sri Sri Writes an Open Letter to AIMPLB Members, Urge Them to Consider an Out-of-court Settlement

New Delhi, March 6:  If the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute is not resolved amicably, then the country may face a “large-scale” communal flare up, said Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi

New Delhi, March 6:  If the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute is not resolved amicably, then the country may face a “large-scale” communal flare up, said Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar on Tuesday. Urging the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) to consider an out-of-court settlement to the row, Sri Sri wrote an open letter to the AIMPLB members and asserted that  going through the court was a loss for both Hindus and Muslims and an out-of-court settlement would be a “win-win situation” for both the communities.

“I urge the leaders of both faiths to take this action seriously. Otherwise, we are pushing our country to the brink of a civil war,” the Art of Living founder stated in the letter.

Sri Sri also presented four possible situations to the Muslim Law Board – (a) the court giving away the land to the Muslims (b) awarding the land to the Hindus (c) upholding the Allahabad High Court order that says there should be a mosque built on one acre whilst the remaining 60 acres be utilised to build the temple (d) Parliament passing a legislation.

“In all the four options, either through the court or through the government, the result will be devastating for the nation in general and the Muslim community in particular,” the letter read.

Ravi Shankar said the best solution would be an out-of-court settlement, in which the Muslim bodies come forward and gift one acre of land to the Hindus, who, in turn, would gift five acres of land nearby to the Muslims to build a bigger mosque.

In his letter the Art of Living founder also told the AIMPLB leaders that Islam permitted the shifting of the mosque to another location and that cleric Maulana Salman Nadvi and many other Muslim scholars had endorsed it. Ravi Shankar, however, said, “Muslims are not surrendering this land to the people who demolished the Babri Masjid or to a particular organisation.

“On the contrary, they are gifting it to the people of India. They must keep this in their minds and spirit. It is only reconciliation and an expression of their broad- mindedness, benevolence, magnanimity and goodwill.”

His letter came a day after his controversial interview in which he had said that India will turn into Syria if the Ram temple issue is not resolved soon.

“There will be bloodshed if the Supreme Court rules against Hindus in Babri Masjid-Ram Mandir case,” Sri Sri had said in an interview to a news channel. However, he clarified his statement earlier in the day, saying,”Perceiving caution as a threat and a handshake as an assault is a sign of a distorted mind. If court rules against a temple, there will be bloodshed. Do you think the Hindu majority will allow it? They will garner resentment towards the Muslim community.”

“If court rules in favour of a temple, Muslims will feel defeated. They may lose faith in the judiciary and there are chances of resorting to extremism. Exchange is the only solution. Muslims will get 5 acres of land in return, elsewhere in Ayodhya” he had tweeted on Tuesday.

(With inputs from agencies)