Prominent members of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and religious leaders have hinted that hidden hand of Congress was responsible for delay in verdict which was scheduled for September 24.

It would be worth mentioning here that Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court had decided on September 24 for announcing the judgment on title suit of Ayodhya but one Ramesh Chandra Tripathi moved Supreme Court and sought intervention for postponement and demanded that time should be given for negotiated settlement of the issue pending for last 60 years.

Maulana Nizamuddin, general secretary of AIMPLB said that the delay had disappointed large number of the people including the office-bearers of the board.

Similarly, Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangimahali who is also executive committee member of the Board said that Congress never wanted that the verdict should be announced at this time that is why it delayed it.

The spokesman of the board, Qasim Rasool Ilyas reportedly said that the minute Congress spokesman welcomed the deferment of the judgment, it was exposed.

Zafaryab Zilani, counsel for All Indian Sunni Waqf Board and convenor of Babri Masjid Action Committee also blamed Congress and its senior leaders for playing important role in deferment of verdict on Ayodhya issue.

Zilani is of the view that verdict should come as it could pave the way for further negotiations between the two parties.

Zafaryab said in the past there had been many attempts to reach negotiated settlement but all failed and each party was firm on its claim.

So much so even BJP state president Surya Pratap Shahi also blamed Congress for deferment of the verdict. Shahi said that Ramesh Chandra Tripathi who moved the application in Supreme Court had been a Congress sympathiser and party was behind the deferment of the verdict. He had even charged important office-bearers of the party of visiting Lucknow on the secret mission.

Firebrand Hindu leaders like Vinay Katiyar and Mahant Aditya Nath, both MPs, too blamed Congress for deferment of the verdict.

Muslim leaders in Congress are too feeling embarrassed at the manner in which their party went out of the way to welcome the deferment of the verdict.

They feel that party should have restrained itself from reacting over the development till the final verdict was delivered by the Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court.

Some of the Muslim leaders in Congress said that deferment of verdict could go against the party's interest at a time when minorities were returning to party after a long gap.

Congress party has however disassociated itself from the petitioner Ramesh Chandra Tripathi.

Congress spokesman Subodh Srivastav said that Tripathi had nothing to do with Congress and he had never participated in party programme in the past.(IPA Service)