BJP terms Shia Board proposal on Ayodhya as 'good', asks Rahul Gandhi to clarify his party's stand

The BJP on Wednesday termed the proposal of the Uttar Pradesh Shia Waqf Board on resolving the Ayodhya issue as "good" and asked Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi to clarify his party's stand by breaking his "silence".

The UP Shia Waqf Board proposed relinquishing its right over the disputed land in Ayodhya and building a 'masjid-e-aman" in Lucknow to resolve the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid tangle on Monday. A draft for resolving the issue, prepared by the Shia Waqf Board, was submitted in the Supreme Court on November 18.

"The Shia Waqf Board has put forward a good suggestion by filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that a Ram temple be built in Ayodhya and a mosque in Lucknow. It's a good suggestion to resolve the issue," BJP national spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao told reporters.

He was in the city to campaign for the BJP Assembly poll candidates. "The BJP is of a clear opinion that a glorious temple of Lord Ram be built in Ayodhya, but what the Congress wants to say? We demand that Rahul Gandhi make his party's stand clear by breaking his silence on the issue", Rao said.

He said the BJP supported the Shia Waqf Board's suggestion but also wanted to hear a reply from the Congress. Rao claimed that outfits like Nirmohi Akhada have also extended their support to the Shia Waqf Board's suggestion on the Ayodhya issue.

"We demand a clarification from Rahul Gandhi before the apex court begins hearing on the issue on December 5," he said.