NEW DELHI: A hearing in the Ayodhya land dispute case has begun in the top Court today. The Supreme Court said that it is not only about property, but it is about sentiment and faith.
On February 26, the Supreme Court had said it would pass an order today on whether to refer the matter to a court-appointed mediator.
The court asked the contesting parties to explore the possibility of amicably settling the dispute through mediation, saying it may help in “healing relations”.
It said it is concerned only about resolving the dispute as it has no control over what happened in the past. The court said that there need not be one mediator but a panel of mediators.
It stated that “When the mediation is on, it should not be reported on. It may not be a gag, but no motive should be attributed to anyone when the mediation process is on.”
A five-judge constitution bench headed by Ranjan Gogoi, and comprising justices SA Bobde, SA Nazeer, DY Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan will resume hearing the case.
The court had earlier said that even if there is “one per cent chance” of settling the dispute amicably, the parties should go for mediation.