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Hindu idols at Taj Mahal? An appeal to dig into 'hidden chambers'

"Approximately 20 rooms of the Taj Mahal are closed and no one is permitted to enter. It is said that these chambers contain Hindu deity statues and texts," the BJP leader said.

BJP leader files plea in Allahabad High Court to open 20 rooms in Taj Mahal for hidden Hindu idols gcw
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Agra, First Published May 8, 2022, 3:04 PM IST

The Allahabad High Court's Lucknow bench has received a plea asking it to issue orders to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to unlock 20 rooms within Agra's world-famous Taj Mahal to investigate if Hindu statues and inscriptions are buried inside.

The request was submitted by Dr Rajneesh, the BJP's media in-charge of the Ayodhya district, who would be represented in court by counsel Rudra Vikram Singh once the issue is scheduled for hearing, according to the Hindustan Times.

It has also requested the creation of a committee appointed by the state government to examine these rooms and hunt for evidence of Hindu idols or texts.

"There is a historic dispute over the Taj Mahal. Approximately 20 rooms of the Taj Mahal are closed and no one is permitted to enter. It is said that these chambers contain Hindu deity statues and texts. I have petitioned the Supreme Court for orders directing ASI to access these rooms in order to gather facts. There is no harm in opening these chambers and putting all disputes to rest," the BJP leader remarked.

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Rajneesh Singh said he has been trying to ascertain facts about the 20 locked rooms of Taj Mahal since 2020 through the Right to Information Act (RTI). He had filed an RTI in 2020 with the Union ministry of Culture seeking information about the rooms.

Six attorneys filed suit in 2015 claiming that the Taj Mahal was once a Shiva temple. In 2017, BJP leader Vinay Katiyar reiterated the claim and invited Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to visit the monument to inspect the Hindu symbols within. In January 2019, BJP politician Anant Kumar Hegde alleged that Shah Jahan did not build the Taj Mahal, but rather purchased it from King Jayasimha. Such claims have been debunked not just by historians, but also by the Archeological Survey of India, which has repeatedly discredited revisionist interpretations of the Taj Mahal's past and dismissed claims of ownership.

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