Justice Sharma issues dissenting note; favours conciliation in Ayodhya land dispute case

LUCKNOW - Issuing a dissenting note on the order issued by his two co-judges of the Allahabad High Court’s Special Bench, constituted for Ayodhya land dispute case, Justice Dharma Veer Sharma on Monday allowed postponement of the verdict on Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid row.

The three-member Special Bench of the Allahabad High Court in Ayodhya land dispute case comprises Justice S U Khan and Justice Sudhir Aggarwal besides Justice Dharma Veer Sharma.

He also expressed disagreement with his co-judges of the Lucknow Bench of the Court, Justice S U Khan and Justice Sudhir Aggarwal, on the question of exploring an out-of-court settlement on the issue and rooted for mediation or conciliation.

The Bench is slated to give its verdict on the case on Friday.

Justice Sharma was not in agreement with the recent ruling of his colleagues that imposed a fine of Rs.50,000 on the parties who sought a postponement.

Justice Sharma said parties involved in the case must be given the freedom to try and workout an amicable settlement even until Sep 23.

He had refrained from signing the Sep 17 order issued by the Special Bench which turned down the plea for postponement of the final verdict slated for Sep 24,

Justic Sharma also said that his co-judges did not consult him before taking the decision to reject the application seeking deferment of the verdict and making an effort towards an amicable out-of-court settlement.

“I am sorry to say that I was not consulted by my brother judges before they passed their order; otherwise I would have expressed my views then itself,” Justice Sharma has stated in his order.

“In its order dated July 27, the Special Bench had unanimously given top priority to efforts for trying to resolve the issue through mediation or conciliation even until a day before the proposed pronouncement of the final verdict on Sep 24,” it further stated.

Taking an exception to certain remarks by his co-judges in their order dated Sep 17 about “mischievous intentions” behind the plea for postponement and an out-of-court settlement, Justice Sharma said: I do not see any mischievous intention behind the move,” he pointed out while stressing that the fine of Rs.50,000 slapped on the applicant by the bench was also not in consonance with law.”

The Special Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Friday rejected a plea for deferment of the verdict in the Babri Masjid title suit and imposed a heavy fine on applicant Ramesh Chandra Tripathi.

The court had reserved its judgment on July 26 in the 60-year-old title suit.

On July 27, the court took the initiative for an amicable solution to the dispute when it called on counsel for the contending parties to go into the possibility. But no headway was made. (ANI)