New Delhi: A prominent Muslim leader on February 27 supported any "unanimous"
Parliamentary Legislation to build the Ram temple and said Muslims were open to
discussing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s idea of even gifting the "disputed
site" to Hindus but not at the point of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)'s bayonet.
Jawed Habeeb, president of the Bharti Majlis, also castigated the Congress and other
Opposition parties for merely offering "lip service" to the minority community and
drawing political dividends.
"The Ayodhya issue can be resolved only through courts, dialogue or a Parliamentary
enactment. We are not opposed to any Legislation, provided it is done through
consensus among all political parties and not under pressure from VHP and Bajrang
Dal," he told reporters, adding, "the Congress party should take the initiative to
resolve the issue."
Habeeb, who claimed to have discussed a "proposal to solve the issue" with Prime
Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on February 2, said, "Let us be clear whether we want
India's Ram or VHP's Ram. Ram was Imam-E-Hind."
He suggested setting up of a National Ram Trust as against VHP's Ram Janambhoomi
Trust, which should comprise all Shankaracharyas. "We cannot put at stake the lives
of millions of people over a 10-feet land," he said.
Habeeb, a former member of the Babri Masjid Action Committee, said the VHP and
Bajrang Dal were equally responsible for internal terrorism as much as Pakistan's
Inter Services Intelligence (ISI).
PTI
