Section 144 imposed in Ayodhya district ahead of Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid case verdict

Ayodhya: Section 144 has been imposed till December 10 in Ayodhya district by the District Magistrate in anticipation of Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid dispute verdict. The section has been imposed from now till December 10 and the Ayodhya district administration has been asked to remain on alert.

This comes after the Supreme Court on October 4 said that the arguments in the Ayodhya land case will be completed by October 17. Earlier, the Court had set October 18 as the deadline to conclude the argument in this case.

In a clear indication that judgment in Ayodhya dispute case is likely to be delivered before CJI Ranjan Gogoi`s retirement in November, the Supreme Court on September 26 had said that it cannot grant even a single extra day beyond October 18 to all petitioners to complete their submissions.

The apex court had further stated that if the need arises, it will hear the Ayodhya title dispute case on Saturdays as well to ensure that the hearing is concluded by October 18. 

Earlier on Saturday, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) had said that there won't be any compromise in the Ayodhya land dispute case and expressed hope that the Supreme Court verdict will come in favour of Muslims.

This came as, on September 18, Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi allowed the mediation process to resume simultaneously along with the arguments. He also asked for all arguments before the apex court to be concluded by October 18. 

A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi had started the day-to-day proceedings from August 6 after mediation proceedings failed to find an amicable solution to the vexatious dispute, which pertains to the case of the title suit over the 2.77 acre of disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land.

The court is hearing the fourteen appeals challenging the 2010 Allahabad High Court verdict which ordered equal division of the 2.77-acre disputed land in Ayodhya among the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla. The 16th-century Babri Masjid was demolished on December 6, 1992.