‘Muslims should give up claim on other religious sites’

PRAYAGRAJ:: With arguments over and the Supreme Court having reserved the judgment in the sensitive Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case, the saint community have appealed to the members of the Muslim community to give up their claim on other disputed sites located in different parts of the country to strengthen Hindu-Muslimunity.

Mahant Narendra Giri, president of the Akhil Bhartiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP), the apex decision making body of the 13 recognised monastic orders of the country, on Thursday said, “We appeal to Muslims to hand over disputed religious sites to their Hindu brothers including the ones at Mathura and Kashi as these were constructed by damaging temples that existed there on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and these are impure and are of no use to Muslims.”

Giri was recently re-elected as the president of the religious body for another five years.

He said that from point of view of the members of the Muslim community, all disputed sites were impure because of which they do not offer namaz at these sites. As such if the Muslim brothers decide to give up their claims on these disputed sites, it would send a strong message among the masses regarding the unity among the two religious communities, he maintained.

Giri, however, made plain that this was just an appeal to members of the Muslim community and the Hindu saints were hopeful that there would be strong response in favour of it.

IF THE MUSLIM BROTHERS DECIDE TO GIVE UP THEIR CLAIMS ON THESE DISPUTED SITES, IT WOULD SEND A STRONG MESSAGE