Lucknow, July 3
The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court, hearing the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title suit, today gave five more weeks to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to complete the excavation in the disputed site at Ayodhya and directed the ASI to submit its report by August 22.
In an explicit order, the three-member Bench comprising Justice Sudhir Narain, Justice S.R. Alam and Justice Bhawar Singh, directed the Director-General of the ASI to “ensure that the ASI team completes digging at the stipulated time and submits its report by August 22”
The Director-General, of the ASI has been asked to depute three Additional Superintendent Archaeologists to expedite the excavation work. The new officials are to be deputed within three days, the court directed. The court has also directed the ASI to immediately increase the number of labourers for carrying out the excavation work. Earlier, some 200 labourers were engaged in the excavation work but now their strength had been reduced to less than 50.
The ASI had earlier sought three-month extension with a pray that they should be allowed to work from October to December as digging could be cumbersome during the rains. Though the pro-temple counsels did not oppose it, the pro-mosque counsels objected to it saying that the ASI was seeking extension following directions from its political bosses in New Delhi.
The court, however, specified that holidays and other such days when the excavation work remained suspended owing to the rains would be excluded from the five-week period. The Chief Engineer of the Public Works Department has been entrusted with the job.
