NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday adjourned the hearing till tomorrow on examining the issue of reviving conspiracy charge against accused like senior BJP leader L K Advani, M M Joshi, now Governor of Rajasthan Kalyan Singh and now Union Minister Uma Bharti which were dropped earlier in the demolition of the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri structure in Ayodhya in 1992 as the original bench was not available.
The matter was heard on March 6 by bench of Justices P C Ghose and R F Nariman but due to change in roaster of judges, the bench no longer sits together.
"We cannot hear the matter today as my brother judge in the case is not with me," Justice Ghose said while slating the hearing for Thursday.
The hearing assumes significance and comes a day after another bench had urged all parties in the case for an out-of-court settlement in the Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute with Chief Justice of India himself offering to mediate.
During the previous hearing, Justice Nariman had remarked, "There are 13 persons who were discharged only on technical grounds. Today, we are saying why can't we club both the cases and have a joint trial in the two FIRs lodged in the wake of demolition of disputed structure. One trial is going on in Lucknow and one in Re Barely. We will not accept the discharge on technical grounds."
First case is lodged against L K Advani and others who were on the dais at Ram Katha Kunj in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992 when the mosque was demolished. While the other case is against lakhs of karsevaks (volunteers) who were present in and around the structure at that time.
CBI has challenged the 2010 order of the high court which had upheld the special court’s decision to drop the charge against the leaders.
CBI had chargesheeted Advani and 20 others under sections 153A (promoting enmity between classes), 153B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 505 (false statements, rumours etc circulated with the intent to cause mutiny or disturb public peace) of the IPC.
The agency had also invoked charges under section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC which was quashed by the special court whose decision was upheld by the high court.
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