Allahabad HC junks plea to open rooms of Taj Mahal
The Allahabad High Court on Thursday dismissed a plea seeking to open the doors of 22 sealed rooms of the Taj Mahal to see "the truth, whatever it is." The court asked the petitioner not to make a mockery of the PIL system. The petition was filed by Rajneesh Singh, the media in-charge of the Bharatiya Janata Party's Ayodhya unit, on Saturday.
Why does this story matter?
Whether Taj Mahal was earlier Tejo Mahalaya and housed a Shiva temple or not has been questioned in the past as well. In 2000, the Supreme Court had quashed the petition of author PN Oak to declare that Taj Mahal was built by a Hindu king. Oak is the author of Taj Mahal, the True Story: The Tale of a Temple Vandalized.
Taj Mahal was a Shiva Temple, contented plea
The plea contended that the Taj Mahal was a Shiva Temple, known as Tejo Mahalaya. It also asked for the government to constitute a fact-finding committee to publish the "real history" of the Mughal-era monument and submission of a report by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The petition cited claims that the idols of the Hindu deities are locked up behind closed doors.
'Tomorrow you'll ask us to go to judges' chambers'
When the petitioner's lawyer said, "There is a truth that the citizens...need to know about the Taj Mahal," a bench of Justices DK Upadhyay and Subhash Vidyarthi quipped, "I welcome you to debate the issue with us in the drawing room and not in a court of law." "Tomorrow you'll come and ask us to go to chambers of Hon'ble judges?" they said.
"You hold that structure is not made by Shah Jahan?"
The bench hit back at Singh when questioned about the actual age of the monument, saying, "You hold that structure is not made by Shah Jahan?" "Are we here to pronounce any judgment? As to who built it or what is the age of Taj Mahal? You need not take us to historical facts which you believe," the judges said.
Read the detailed courtroom proceedings
'Go and research,' says court
When the petitioner stressed his right to information, the judges asked him to "go and research." Advising him, they said, "Please enroll yourself in MA, then go for NET, JRF and if any university denies you to research on such topic then come to us." The bench also stated that the petitioner's plea cannot be granted unless there has been an infringement of rights.
Taj Mahal land belonged to Jaipur royals: BJP MP
Meanwhile, BJP MP Diya Kumari claimed that the land on which the Taj Mahal was built belonged to Jaipur ruler Jai Singh. "Compensation was given in lieu of the land but how much was it...I cannot say this," PTI quoted her as saying. "The land belonged to our family and Shah Jahan had acquired it," Kumari, an erstwhile Jaipur royal family member, said.
