New Delhi, March 15
Though there was a major sense of relief in the Atal Behari Vajpayee government this evening that the “shila daan” had been performed peacefully in Ayodhya amid relative calm all over Uttar Pradesh, there was still an element of unease among certain NDA allies pertaining to the mandir issue.

“There can be no complacency about the Ayodhya tangle as the protracted case is far from over,” observed leaders of these parties vehemently opposed to disturbing the status quo in Ayodhya.

The bottom line, according to these leaders, is that the BJP-led NDA cannot lower its guard in ensuring that the orders of the court are not violated. Therefore, a close watch will have to be kept on the machinations of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas even though they have presently agreed to abide by the directions of the Supreme Court.

With all eyes focussed on Ayodhya today because of the threatening postures adopted by the VHP and RJN of going ahead with their plans, the central leadership was also ill at ease closely monitoring the developments after some hectic behind-the-scenes activity late last night which continued till this forenoon.

Highly-placed sources in the NDA government said the shilas will remain with the district administration of Faizabad till the Ayodhya issue is settled in court. The shilas will be handed over to the authorities concerned in keeping with the final adjudication of the court.

With the conclusion of the religious ceremonies and ringing down of the curtain on the darshan in Ayodhya, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee telephoned U P Governor Vishnu Kant Shastri and congratulated him for the tremendous effort of the administration in keeping matters well under control.

Meanwhile, leaders of the Trinamool Congress, the Lok Janshakti Party, the Rashtriya Lok Dal and even the Samata Party to a certain extent along with the TDP which is supporting the Vajpayee government from outside insisted that “the last word has not been said on finding an amicable solution to the Ayodhya imbroglio. Fortunately, things remained under control.

“Nevertheless, it is imperative that the BJP-led NDA remains steadfast and does not deviate from implementing the national agenda for governance agreed to by all the partners of the coalition government,” they said.