SC judges who gave Ayodhya verdict invited to Ram Lalla pran-pratishtha ceremony

The five Supreme Court judges who gave the verdict in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case in 2019 have been invited to the consecration ceremony of Ram Lalla in the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya on January 22, reported Law Today.

The invitation has also been extended to over 50 jurists including former Chief Justices, judges and prominent lawyers.

The five-judge bench, comprising then-CJI Ranjan Gogoi, former CJI SA Bobde, current CJI DY Chandrachud and former judges Ashok Bhushan and S Abdul Nazeer, had ruled in favour of the construction of a grand Ram temple by a trust at the disputed site on November 9, 2019.

The bench granted the entire disputed land to the deity Ram Lalla and ordered the government to allot an alternative five-acre plot to the Muslim side to build a mosque. In Ayodhya, the Babri mosque stood atop the site of the birthplace of Lord Ram, an opinion that the saffron camp began building into a sustained campaign starting in the late 1980s, eventually leading to the mosque’s demolition in 1992.

Currently, ex-CJI Gogoi is serving as a Rajya Sabha MP, nominated by the President. Justice Bobde succeeded Justice Gogoi as the 47th Chief Justice of India from November 18, 2019, to April 23, 2021. Justice Chandrachud is currently serving as the Chief Justice of India. Justice Ashok Bhushan retired as a judge of the Supreme Court in July 2021, and Justice Nazeer is serving as Governor of Andhra Pradesh.

Meanwhile, invitation cards for the consecration ceremony have been sent out to over 7,000 guests, including 3,000 VVIPs, priests, donors and several politicians.

The week-long vedic rituals for the pran-pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla entered their fourth day on Friday with the lighting of the holy fire followed by the establishment of 'Navagraha' and a 'Havan'.

The 51-inch idol of Ram Lalla, carved by sculptor Arun Yogiraj, was placed inside the temple's sanctum sanctorum on Thursday. Covered with a veil, the idol portrays Lord Ram as a five-year-old child standing on a lotus crafted from the same stone.

Meanwhile, the preparations are in full swing in Ayodhya for the mega pran-prathistha ceremony of Lord Ram Lalla in the newly built Ram Janmabhoomi Temple on January 22.

The rituals commenced on Tuesday and will culminate on January 22 with the pran-prathistha ceremony. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is slated to preside over the ceremonial installation of Ram Lalla. The temple will be open for 'darshan' for the general public from January 23.

In view of the consecration ceremony, the Centre on Thursday announced that all central government offices will be closed for half-day on January 22.