AYODHYA: IN MEDIATION WE MUST TRUST
Professional mediators know how to focus on interests and not on positions. Both sides need a winwin situation, where they can step away from conflict without a loss of face
The US Supreme Court’s Dred Scott judgment of 1857 upheld slavery and led to the American Civil War. Deep inside the bylanes of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh lies a patch of land, all of 0.313 acres but easily the most contested piece of real estate in India. This dispute has cost many thousands of lives over the past 30 years; the fear is that many more may still be killed. A greater fear is that any resolution of the dispute that is unacceptable to any or all the parties concerned may push the country down the dangerous road to disintegration.
Raw human emotions of hurt and fear have morphed into big questions of what it means to be a Hindu or Muslim in the secular republic of India. The Hindu side needs an acknowledgment that India is a state with a Hindu majority whose religious hurt over historical wrongs needs redress. The Muslim side needs reassurance that they live as equal citizens of India, with constitutional guarantees that protect their lives, property and places of worship. On the sidelines, some of us refuse to believe that divinity is enhanced or diminished by a possessory title over a parcel of land. The country is tired of a never-ending internal conflict and wishes it over for god’s sake.
Nearly 25 years ago, in the Ismail Faruqui judgment, the Supreme Court, while declining the presidential reference in the dispute, wrote: “This is a matter suited essentially to resolution by negotiations [that do] not end in a winner and a loser, while adjudication leads to that end. It is in the national interest that there is no loser at the end of the process adopted for resolution of the dispute so that the final outcome does not leave behind any rancour in anyone.”
The court even in this case was aware that its judgment was unlikely to result in a solution; it was more likely to exacerbate existing fissures in society. In the present case, if the title is vested in the Hindu side, it may well be seen as another instance of an organ of state succumbing to majoritarianism. On the other hand, if the title is vested in the Muslim side, it is unlikely that the mosque can be rebuilt without major repercussions on the ground.
This is why the recent move by the Supreme Court to refer parties to mediation is a welcome development. The process that has been set in motion is a professional, active mediation, not a judgeless negotiation. The mediators are men of eminence. The chairman, Justice F.M.I. Kalifullah, has served with distinction in the Supreme Court. Sreeram Panchu is a senior advocate who has pioneered mediation as an alternative dispute resolution mechanism in this country. Even Sri Sri Ravi Shankar has come a long way from his initial days with Mahesh Yogi. Although Panchu is the only one with professional expertise as a mediator, it is hoped the others on the panel will rely on his expertise. The panel has to hold sittings in Faizabad and submit a status report within four weeks and try to resolve the issue within eight weeks.
Professional mediators know how to focus on interests and not on positions. Human needs and emotions are at the heart of interests. Mediation in this case must identify, express and discuss the emotions that lie at the heart of the dispute. A win-win situation would be ideal for both sides, so that they can step away from conflict without a loss of face. A focus on facilitating honest, heart-to-heart dialogue, instead of focusing on mediating a settlement, may yet yield results. Settlements often emerge without struggle when underlying emotions are successfully assuaged.
Hindus must walk away with a sense that their hurt from a bygone era has been assuaged. Muslims must walk away with a sense of not having been coerced by majoritarian bullying but having secured an equal stake in the safety of their lives, property and places of worship. There cannot be a perceived loser; instead a peaceful India must emerge the winner.