In a packed courtroom, a Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said: "The mediation has not resulted in a final settlement of the dispute. Therefore, the court will start the day-to-day hearing from August 6."

Senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan, who represents a Muslim litigant, said his client opposed BJP MP Subramanian Swamy's writ petition emphasizing speeding up the trial.

Dhavan sought a firm reply from the judges on the fate of this writ. The court replied: "We will see to it."

Dhavan said he would probably require 20 days to complete the arguments on the matter and appealed to the court that the length of his argument should not be cut. The court replied: "We will see to it."

The Constitution bench refused to defer hearing, saying it would deal with Dhavan's objections during the hearing.