MP Asaduddin Owaisi has expressed reservations over the appointment of spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar as one of the three mediators to resolve the Ayodhya dispute by the Supreme Court on Friday.
Sri Sri was named as a member of the three-member mediation committee, also comprising former Supreme Court justice F.M. Kalifulla and veteran lawyer and mediation expert Sriram Panchu. The Supreme Court gave the mediation committee a time frame of eight weeks to talk to the parties to the Ayodhya dispute.
Owaisi was quoted by ANI as referring to a statement by Sri Sri in 2018 that India could turn into Syria if the Ayodhya dispute was not resolved. Owaisi claimed, “Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, who has been appointed a mediator, had earlier made a statement 'if Muslims don't give up their claim on Ayodhya,India will become Syria.' It would've been better if SC had appointed a neutral person.”
Sri Sri tweeted about his appointment as a mediator for the Ayodhya dispute on an optimistic note. “Respecting everyone, turning dreams to reality, ending long-standing conflicts happily and maintaining harmony in society—we must all move together towards these goals,” Sri Sri tweeted, adding the hashtag Ayodhyamediation.
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Sri Sri Ravi Shankar had been engaged in a mediation effort on the Ayodhya dispute, reaching out to Muslim groups for an out-of-court settlement. In March last year, when interacting with a TV channel, Sri Sri warned, “If Ram Mandir issue is not solved, we will have a Syria in India.”
His remarks were criticised by some parties as being provocative. Sri Sri repeated the same warning at an event in Jabalpur that same month.
