Muslim litigants stopped from Ramjanmabhoomi site visit, send plaint

Ayodhya: The Muslim litigants in Ayodhya case, who were mandated by court to visit and inspect Ramjanmabhoomi site every fortnight to ensure status quo, alleged they are not being allowed to enter since the Supreme Court pronounced its verdict and have dispatched complaints to court-appointed observers and Ayodhya commissioner.
The Muslim litigants went to the site on November 17 and December 1, but were granted access only till Manas Bhawan, the administrative building of the site, and were denied entry in the area of makeshift temple.
After Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had completed excavation at disputed site in 2003, the Allahabad high court had ordered fortnightly inspections of site and items found in excavation by litigants from both sides, the divisional commissioner, who is the receiver, district and ASI officers under the supervision of two judges as observers to ensure status quo is being maintained.
Later, the Supreme Court had also ordered continuation of same arrangement.
Muslim litigants Mufti Hasbullah and Iqbal Ansari visited the site on November 17, and claimed they were denied entry beyond Manas Bhawan, adding they had access to entire area before verdict.
Mufti Hasbullah and another litigant Mohammad Umar visited the site on December 1, but were denied entry.
Mufti Hasbullah told TOI he has sent a complaint to Supreme Court-appointed observer and commissioner informing they were being denied entry in acquired area without any court sanction to this effect.
Ayodhya additional district magistrate P D Gupta, told TOI, "The Supreme Court has already delivered its verdict in the title suit. Now, the site would be handed over to the trust, so what is the need for inspection for ensuring status quo."
When TOI contacted Ayodhya commissioner M P Agrawal seeking his reaction, he said, "I have just joined as commissioner, so I have no idea about it."
Hindu litigants have, however, not visited the site for inspection after the verdict.