Zeenews Bureau
Lucknow: The All India Muslim Personal
Law Board today unanimously decided to challenge the Allahabad
High Court`s verdict on the Ayodhya title suits in the Supreme
Court.
"During a meeting of the working committee, it was
decided that the AIMPLB will move the Supreme Court directly
or through the Sunni Central Waqf Board," Board sources said
here.
The decision was taken at a closed-door gathering of the 51-member executive held at the Darul-Uloom, Nawa-tul-Ulema, popularly known as Nadwa here.
The committee discussed in detail the High
Court verdict. The Muslim Law Board members had earlier made
it clear that the High Court verdict was not acceptable to it
as it was based on faith and not on evidence.
The Sunni Central Waqf Board had ruled out giving up
claim on the mosque in Ayodhya and said that exploring
possibilities for an amicable solution to the dispute without
a concrete proposal was a "futile exercise".
Earlier, the Board had resolved to appeal against the order of the High Court.
However, since the All India Muslim Personal Law Board is the highest decision-making body regarding religious rights of Muslims in the country, the final decision on the issue was left to the board.
"The meeting felt that this judgment suffers from a number of infirmities. The executive committee of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) considers it to be the right and obligation of the Indian Muslims to challenge the judgment in the apex court and remove distortions introduced by the judgment in the basic values of the constitution and the established norms of jurisprudence," the board said in a press statement.
"Under these circumstances, the Board decides that this verdict be challenged in the Supreme Court of India," it said.
The Waqf Board also said that the proposal should be
within the framework of Shariat (Islamic law) and felt that
the threat by the oldest litigant, Mohammed Hashim Ansari, to
pull out will have no impact on the case.
"This issue can only be sorted out when claim of
Muslims is upheld. We can not surrender our claim," the
Board`s Counsel Zafaryab Jilani had said.
Chaired by Maulana Rabe Hasan Nadwi, the rector of the Nadwa, the meeting was reportedly attended by prominent Islamic scholars and clerics from different parts of the country.
A Board source earlier said no consensus could be obtained on going for an amicable out-of-court settlement even though some members of the Board expressed their views in favour of such a settlement.
The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court had on
September 30 directed that the 2.77-acre disputed land be
divided in three parts among the Hindus and the Muslims. Of
this, two parts go to Hindu organisations while the remaining
to the Muslims.
"During the meeting it was observed that the HC
judgement suffers from a number of infirmities and it was the
obligation of the Muslims to challenge it in the apex court,"
sources said.
-Agencies inputs
