New Delhi: The Supreme Court this morning reserved its order on whether the politically sensitive Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute can be adjudicated through mediation. On Feb.26, the top Court had said it would pass an order today on whether to refer the matter to a Court-appointed mediator. A five-Judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi asked the contesting parties to explore the possibility of amicably settling the decades old dispute through mediation, saying it may help in “healing relations.”

As the Court proceedings began, one of the lawyers opposed the mediation process saying that even if the parties agreed to resolve the matter amicably, the public would not agree to a compromise, to which Justice S.A. Bobde said that mediation didn’t mean necessarily compromise by one party and a win for the other.

The Judge also stated, “We cannot undo Babar invading etc. We can only look into the current situation.” “We understand the gravity of the case. Past cannot be undone. We can only decide what happens in the present,” he added.

While the lawyers of the Hindu parties opposed to the idea of mediation saying such attempts had failed in the past, the Muslim parties’ lawyers were up for the negotiations if a regular hearing on the matter went on simultaneously.