MEA briefs diplomats of various countries on SC's Ayodhya verdict
Top envoys of several countries, including Russia, France, and Iran, were briefed by senior officials of the Ministry of External Affairs on the Supreme Court's verdict in the Ayodhya case on Saturday, sources said.
The envoys briefed were from various parts of the world ranging from Southeast Asia, South America, Africa, Europe, and the Gulf, sources said. The envoys were given a heads up on the facts surrounding the judgment and the historical background behind it, they said.
The Supreme Court, in its verdict pronounced earlier in the day, backed the construction of a Ram temple by a trust at the disputed site in Ayodhya and ruled that an alternative five-acre plot be allotted for building a mosque in the Hindu holy town.
Following the verdict, top ministry officials briefed top diplomats from several missions, sources said. Some envoys of key strategic countries and India's close allies were briefed by Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale one-on-one, they said.
"Although it is definitely an internal issue of India, we are very appreciative of the line of communication that the MEA is having with all of the diplomatic corp by giving us a heads up, informing us, and fully explaining the historical background behind this decision," Dean of Diplomatic Corps and Dominican Republic Ambassador Hans Dannenberg Castellanos said.
In August, India had briefed the envoys of five permanent members of the UN Security Council and several other nations about its decision to scrap Article 370 provisions, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, and bifurcate the state.
