I was taking keen interest in resolving the (Babari Masjid) issue along with my friend, Mr. Krishna Kant, who is the Governor of Andhra Pradesh, even before we became Governors.

We were making an effort since July 1989. We were holding discussions. We were meeting religious heads of both the sides. I went to Madras and Kanjeevaram also. I approached the religious heads of Muslim community also...

...When we became Governors, we had to take the Prime Minister's and the Rashtrapati into confidence...

The Rashtrapati and the Prime Minister both gave us their blessings... We did make an attempt... It was jeopardised by Subodh Kant Sahay.

...He gave it to the Press... Our view was that if it is leaked then people... the interested persons in the controversy... would like to prevent some peaceful solution be discovered.

...He gave it to the TV and he started talking... he went himself to Kanjeevaram and said that 'we understand Yunus Saleem and Krishna Kant had come. What talks had taken place?' Ascertained it from them and then gave it to the press. Then it came in the press and TV and the controversy started.

...If it was not deliberate, it was foolishness. We strongly protested to the Prime Minister...

...We invited all the Muslim religious heads... It was for the first time in the history of this controversy that on one table the Muslim and Hindu religious leaders sat together to discuss the problem.

But this person (Sahay) was not interested in solving any problem. Therefore, he did not allow us to proceed.

...When the Government changed... Nobody asked us to take interest and we were not interested then, because as Governors, we had our limitations...

(Source: The Indian Express, 25 Feb, 1991)