Indian spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, who arrived in Ayodhya on Thursday to hold talks with all stakeholders in the Ram temple-Babri mosque dispute, made a crucial statement that a majority of Muslims appear to support the idea of Ram temple, the India Times reports .
“I know some may not agree with this, but Muslims by and large are not opposing the Ram temple,” Ravi Shankar said while speaking to reporters.
Voluntary humanitarian NGO Art of Living’s founder, who has been meeting representatives from both the sides, said youths and leaders from the two communities can make the resolution of the dispute possible.
“A solution may sometimes seem impossible but our people, youth and leaders of both communities can make it possible,” he said.
He stressed that both sides need to come on the same page for the dispute to get resolved.
Slamming his critics, Ravi Shankar said: “I have never said I have a ready formula, that I will solve this issue.”
Earlier in the day, the spiritual guru had said that the signs from the meetings he has been holding are positive.
Last month, Ravi Shankar had expressed his willingness to mediate in the Babri Mosque-Ram Temple dispute.
On Wednesday, he met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and briefed him about his initiative to try and thrash out a mutually acceptable formula to the long-simmering dispute.
The warring parties in the matter have been locked in a protracted legal dispute over the land on which the Babri mosque stood before it was pulled down in 1992. The matter is now pending before the Supreme Court.
The spiritual guru's offer for mediating in the dispute has received a tepid and sceptical response from key protagonists on both sides, with the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) voicing reservations about his role.
A bench headed by the then Chief Justice JS Khehar had said in March this year that such religious issues can be resolved through out-of-court negotiations and offered to mediate to arrive at an amicable settlement.
"These are issues of religion and sentiments. These are issues where all the parties can sit together and arrive at a consensual decision to end the dispute. All of you may sit together and hold a cordial meeting," the court had opined.