Ayodhya Verdict: Who is Ram Lalla Virajman?

Image: PTI

The Supreme Court of India (SC) on November 9 delivered its landmark verdict on the Ayodhya land dispute case, directing the Centre to form within three months a trust which will build a temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya.

At the heart of the entire matter, which has been on for centuries, is the question of history and faith. According to News18, law permits a Hindu deity to be considered a 'juristic person' with the right to be sued or to sue.

The deity, 'Ram Lalla Virajman', or the infant Lord Ram, through next friend and former Allahabad High Court judge Deoki Nandan Agrawal, and the Janmbhoomi (the birthplace) moved the lawsuit in 1989, seeking title right over the entire disputed property on the key ground that the land itself has the character of the deity and of a 'Juristic entity'.

Also read: Supreme Court awards land to Hindu side; Muslims to get alternative plot for mosque

Like other Hindu deities, the infant form of Lord Ram was also deemed a perpetual minor under law.

Agrawal was also a senior leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). According to reports, Tirloki Nath Pandey, also a senior VHP leader, became the next friend after Agarwal's death in 2002.

As an aside, an India Today report from 2013 stated that the infant Lord Ram is, in fact, worth crores.

The report stated that according to account details with the State Bank of India's Ayodhya branch, Ram Lalla Virajman's bank balance then was Rs 2.7 crore.

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