Cong Working Committee discusses Ayodhya ruling

The Congress Working Committee met in New Delhi on Tuesday to discuss the party's strategy on the Allahabad high court verdict on the Ayodhya title suit case.

It is the first meeting of the party's apex policy making body after the September 30 verdict in the case.

Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh are among the top leaders participating in the meet, which is also expected to discuss the situation in the Kashmir valley.

The party is expected to come out with a strategy on the Ayodhya issue at a time when parties like Samajwadi Party and the Lok Janshakti Party are trying to win support of Muslims on the matter. The two parties have expressed their disappointment over the verdict.

The Congress has attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party for dubbing the Ayodhya verdict as a case of "faith upheld by law", saying the opposition party was "atrociously politicising" the issue and indulging in double-speak.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Home Minister P Chidambaram are also attending the meeting.

The CWC has now been converted into Congress Steering Committee following the re-election of Sonia Gandhi as party chief for a fourth term.

The meeting is also expected to finalise the dates for the plenary session at which the elections for the CWC are expected to be held.