LUCKNOW: With the path to temple construction clear after the notification of Shri Ram Tirtha Shetra Trust, the Babri Masjid Action Committee (BMAC) has raised the demand to take custody of the remains of Babri mosque which was demolished in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992. BMAC has even decided to move Supreme Court to seek the possession of the debris so that the martyred mosque could be accorded due honour.

Interacting with media persons, BMAC convenor and senior advocate Zafaryab Jilani confirmed that the committee had decided to approach Apex Court seeking an order for handing over the remains of the mosque to Muslims. Even All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) has also been approached for its opinion in this regard. “Our effort is to get the Mosque remains before the construction of Ram Temple commences in Ayodhya.”

“As per Sharia laws the remains of a mosque cannot be used in construction of any other mosque or building neither can it be disrespected. As the Supreme Court in its November 9 order did not mention anything regarding the remains of the mosque, so we have decided to petition it in this connection by submitting a request,” said Jinali.

Meanwhile, the saints and seers of Ayodhya along with the VHP regional leadership rejected the demand in one voice refusing to spare even a handful of soil from the place. “No debris is left on the spot. Whatever is there belongs to Ram Janmabhoomi. The debris of the demolished mosque was taken away by lakhs of kar sewaks in 1992 itself,” said Rajendra Pankaj, a regional leader of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), based in Ayodhya.

Jilani, on the other, reasoned that the SC had accepted the demolition of Babri masjid in 1992 and called it unconstitutional. “So its debris and other construction materials like stones, pillars etc. should be handed over to Muslims. There is no clear order in the court's decision regarding the remains of the mosque and in such a scenario, it is feared the remains might be disrespected while removing them from the site,” said Jilani.

However, one of the main litigants Iqbal Ansari said he did not support the demand of debris as it would lead to another dispute. “I don’t support the demand for debris. The court has given that land for temple and it should come upon it. There is no point in demanding debris of the demolished mosque now,” said
Ansari.

The Centre on Wednesday constituted an independent 15-member trust to oversee the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, an announcement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha four days before the expiry of a 3-month deadline set by the Supreme Court. It has also been decided to transfer 67.703 acre land to the trust, PM Modi said in the Parliament.

In addition to that, Uttar Pradesh government has allocated five-acre land for a mosque in Raunai town, 20 km away from Ayodhya, to the UP Sunni Waqf Board as directed by the Supreme Court.