Sack Sibal from Congress for appeal on Ayodhya: Siraj Mehdi

He said party spokesman Ranjit Singh Surjewala's statement that it was a personal view of Sibal and not of the Congress party would not do.

Lucknow, December 7: A senior Muslim Congress leader Thursday wrote to party president Sonia Gandhi demanding that Kapil Sibal is sacked from the party for moving the Supreme Court seeking to defer the Ayodhya hearing.

"Sibal should be sacked or he should resign from the party on moral grounds. At a time when the party has unanimously proposed to make Rahul Gandhi its president, his statements in court are damaging," former Congress MLC, vice president and chairman of the party's minority department Siraj Mehdi said.

He said party spokesman Ranjit Singh Surjewala's statement that it was a personal view of Sibal and not of the Congress party would not do.

"Sibal's statement came when Gujarat elections are going on and Assembly elections are due in many states next year. He has always given statements which are damaging to the party," Mehdi said.

All sides agreed to abide by the apex court's advice of resolving the Ayodhya dispute through talks, he said.

"Neither people nor parties (in Ayodhya dispute) agree to Sibal's statement in court," Mehdi added.

Senior Congress leader and lawyer Kapil Sibal had moved the top court seeking to defer the hearing of the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute till after the 2019 general polls.

PTI