CM Yogi Adityanath says the Taj Mahal is a historical monument regardless of the emperor who had built it
The Taj Mahal was made by the blood and sweat of "Bharat Mata's sons" and its protection was the responsibility of the Uttar Pradesh government, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said yesterday.
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Yogi Adityanath, UP CM
Announcing that he would be visiting Agra next week to review tourism schemes, the chief minister said the Taj Mahal was a historical monument regardless of the emperor who had built it.
Adityanath's comments come a day after his colleague, BJP MLA Sangeet Som, questioned the Taj Mahal's place in India's heritage and said history would be rewritten to erase Mughal emperors from it. "It is immaterial as to who and how the Taj Mahal was built... It was made by the sweat and blood of Bharat Mata's sons," the chief minister said in Gorakhpur.
"It is famous the world over for its architecture... it is a historical monument and its protection and further development for tourism is the responsibility of the government," he added.
Som's comments on the Taj Mahal had come after the Adityanath government reportedly omitted the 17th century monument from an official booklet on tourist destinations.
After this the state had issued a press release stating, "Tourism projects worth R370 crore are proposed, under which schemes worth Rs 156 crore for development of parks and various facilities are meant for the Taj Mahal and its surrounding areas in Agra."
'Demolish Red Fort'
Monuments such as the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the Parliament House and the Red Fort should be demolished as they too are "symbols of slavery" just as the Taj Mahal, Samajwadi Party general secretary Azam Khan has said.
The SP MLA's remarks on Monday night came in response to Som's comments. "I have always held the view that all symbols of slavery should be erased. Why only Taj Mahal? Why not Parliament, Rashtrapati Bhavan, Qutub Minar and Red Fort? These are all symbols of slavery," Khan told the media.
He said that if the BJP and Som are adamant about not accepting that the Taj Mahal is a legacy of India, then the BJP MLA along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath should come forward to demolish the monument.
UP Governor says
Expressing discontent over BJP MP Sangeet Som's remark against Taj Mahal, Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik on Tuesday said, "The Taj Mahal is one of the wonders of the world, to drag it into controversies is not correct."