JUDGMENT

J. S. VERMA, J. for himself and on behalf of M. N. Venkatachaliah, C. J. and G. N. Ray, J. (Majority view) :- "We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another."

- Jonathan Swift

2. Swami Vivekananda said -

"Religion is not in doctrines, in dogmas, nor in intellectual argumentation; it is being and becoming, it is realisation."

This thought comes to mind as we contemplate the roots of this controversy. Genesis of this dispute is traceable to erosion of some fundamental values of the plural commitments of our polity.

3. The constitutional validity of the Acquisition of Certain Area at Ayodhya Act, 1993 (No. 33 of 1993) (hereinafter referred to as "Act No. 33 of 1993" or "the Act") and the maintainability of Special Reference No. 1 of 1993 (hereinafter referred to as "the Special Reference") made by the President of India under Art. 143(1) of the Constitution of India are the questions for decision herein. The background in which these questions are to be answered is contained in the facts stated in the White Paper on Ayodhya, February 1993, issued by the Government of India.

4. Certain undisputed facts emerging at the hearing may also have relevance for this purpose. These questions are answered on this basis, eschewing facts which are in the area of controversy and have yet to be adjudicated.

BACKGROUND

5. The Bill was introduced in Parliament leading to the above enactment and the said Reference to this Court was made in the historical background set out in the White Paper. Indeed, the two simultaneous acts are an indication of the legislative intent for enactment of the statute, the reference being made as a part of the same exercise with a view to effectuate the purpose of the enactment. This is how, they have to be viewed.

6. The "Overview" at the commencement of the White Paper in Chapter 1 states thus:-

"1.1 Ayodhya situated in the north of India is a township in District Faizabad of Uttar Pradesh. It has long been a place of holy pilgrimage because of its mention in the epic Ramayana as the place of birth of Shri Ram. The structure commonly known as Ram Janma Bhoomi-Babri Masjid was erected as a mosque by one Mir Baqi in Ayodhya in 1528 A. D. It is claimed by some sections that it was built at the site believed to be the birth-spot of Shri Ram where a temple had stood earlier. This resulted in a long-standing dispute.

1.2 The controversy entered a new phase with the placing of idols in the disputed structure in December, 1949. The premises were attached under S. 145 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Civil suits were filed shortly thereafter. Interim orders in these civil suits restrained the parties from removing the idols or interfering with their worship. In effect, therefore, from December, 1949 till December 6, 1992 the structure had not been used as a mosque."

7. The movement to construct a Ram temple at the site of the disputed structure gathered momentum in recent years which became a matter of great controversy and a source of tension. This led to several parleys the details of which are not very material for the present purpose. These parleys involving the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the All India Babri Masjid Action Committee (AIBMAC), however, failed to resolve the dispute. A new dimension was added to the campaign for construction of the temple with the formation of the Government in Uttar Pradesh in June 1991 by the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) which declared its commitment to the construction of the temple and took certain steps like the acquisition of land adjoining the disputed structure while leaving out the disputed structure itself from the acquisition. The focus of the temple construction movement from October 1991 was to start construction of the temple by way of kar-sewa on the land acquired by the Government of Uttar Pradesh while leaving the disputed structure intact. This attempt did not succeed and there was litigation in the Allahabad High Court as well