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Ayodhya: Top court to hear plea against law on land acquisition

NEW DELHI:The Supreme Court today said it would hear a fresh petition challenging the validity of a 1993 central law by which the government acquired 67.

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Tribune News Service
New Delhi, February 15

The Supreme Court today said it would hear a fresh petition challenging the validity of a 1993 central law by which the government acquired 67.703 acre land, including the disputed premises of Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid in Ayodhya.

A Bench of Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Sanjiv Khanna said the petition would be taken up by a Constitution Bench hearing cross-appeals against the 2010 verdict of the Allahabad HC. Seven devotees of Lord Ram had on February 4 moved the SC challenging a 1993 central law on the ground that Parliament didn’t have the legislative competence to acquire the land.

The PV Narasimha Rao government had acquired 67.703 acre—including the 2.77 acre disputed land—through the Ayodhya Act in 1993. The acquisition was upheld by the SC in 1994 in Ismail Faruqui’s case in which it had said if the Centre wanted to return the acquired land to its original owners it might do so.

The Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas was the owner of 42 acres of non-disputed land before acquisition and it has sought return of the excess land acquired. Ahead of the Lok Sabha poll, the Centre also moved the Supreme Court late last month for permission to return 67.390-acre “non-disputed” land acquired by it in 1993 around the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site in Ayodhya to its original owners.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had requested it to modify its March 31, 2003, order to maintain status quo on surplus land until resolution of the dispute and permit it to return the “non-disputed” land around the disputed site to the original owners, particularly the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas.

The Allahabad High Court had on September 30, 2010, ordered dividing the disputed land at Ayodhya equally between Ram Lalla, Nirmohi Akhada and Sunni Wakf Board. The order has been challenged before the Supreme Court which is seized of 14 cross-appeals. 

A five-judge Constitution Bench headed by CJI Gogoi was to take up the matter on January 29, but due to unavailability of Justice SA Bobde the hearing was cancelled.

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