Patna: Chief minister Nitish Kumar on Monday rooted for an out of court settlement of the Ayodhya dispute through mutual talks, and also waded into the controversy over Narendra Modi's speech in the Lok Sabha recently in which the Prime Minister blamed the Congress and Jawaharlal Nehru for Partition.

"It will be a very good thing if the Ayodhya dispute is settled outside the court. We have been holding this view for a long time that it should be resolved through mutual talks and agreement," Nitish said.

"The courts will have to settle the dispute if the issue is not resolved through mutual talks and understanding."

He was speaking on the sidelines of his Lok Samvad (public dialogue) programme at his 1 Aney Marg official residence.

On the controversy over the Prime Minister's blaming Congress for Partition, Nitish pointed out that Mahatma Gandhi was never in favour of division of the country.

"People have their own opinions. The freedom struggle happened under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, who was not in favour of Partition. He was not present in Delhi on Independence Day. Nehru, Patel and others participated in the freedom movement under his leadership," Nitish said.

"Subhas Chandra Bose's contribution is very important and sacrifices by Bhagat Singh and Chandra Shekhar Azad cannot be forgotten. The historical importance of the contribution of Nehru and Sardar (Vallabhbhai) Patel cannot be negated," Nitish added.