New Delhi, June 08: In a significant statement, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today asked political parties and leaders to stay away from the Ayodhya issue so that the "lingering" dispute could be resolved early through talks between representatives of Hindus and Muslims or the judiciary. "It seems difficult that ... fruitful talks can take place between political parties and their leaders," he said at a function here organised on the completion of 50 years of Swami Jayendra Saraswati as Shankarachrya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peeth.
"It is .. clear that the Ayodhya issue can be resolved only when it is freed from politics and when political parties stop looking at it from the point of view of who gains and who loses," Vajpayee said. Asserting that his government wanted to resolve the Ayodhya issue, he said a solution to the problem "lies either in dialogue leading to a mutually acceptable agreement or in a verdict of the judiciary. However, these two options are not mutually exclusive. They can be made complementary". Observing that the matter was before the judiciary and everybody expected it to give its verdict "soon", Vajpayee said at the same time, "it is necessary that representatives of Hindus and Muslims begin to talk to each other to find an amicable and mutually acceptable solution."
He said these talks should be focused both on Ayodhya as well as such other matters that will promote goodwill and harmony between the two communities.
"The more we create goodwill and mutual trust, the easier it becomes to solve the contentious issue," he told the function attended among others by the Shankaracharya, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, former president R Venkataraman and former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao.
Bureau Report