The Supreme Court on Tuesday commenced hearing in the politically sensitive case of Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute in Ayodhya after the efforts to arrive at an amicable settlement through mediation have failed.

"Let us begin the hearing," said a five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi.

The bench, also comprising Justices S A Bobde, D Y Chandrachud, Ashok Bhushan and S A Nazeer, had on August 2 taken note of the report of the three-member mediation panel, headed by former apex court judge FMI Kalifulla, that the mediation proceedings, which went on for about four months have not resulted in any final settlement.