Maverick Bharatiya Janata Party MlA Sangeet Som ran into another controversy on Monday wheen he said that Taj Mahal was a symbol of Islamic slavery, it was built by traitors and should get no place in the history of India. He went on to term the Mughal-era monument as a ‘blot on Indian culture’.
“Many were sad when the Taj Mahal was removed from the brochure of UP’s Tourism department listing historical places in the state. Taj Mahal should have no place in the Indian history as it was built by traitors. Shah Jahan wanted to wipe out Hindus. If these people are part of our history, then it is very sad and we will change this history,” said Som at a rally in Meerut on Monday.
Thee BJP MlA from Sardhana seat of Meerut exhibited his ignorance of medieval history by claiming, “The creator of Taj Mahal had imprisoned his father.” The fact remains that the builder o Taj, Shah Jahan had been imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb.
IOn its part, the BJP however distanced itself from the controversial remarks. Tourism minister Reeta Bahuguna Joshi responded by saying that Taj Mahal was ‘part of our cultural heritage’.
``It might be Som’s individual opinion. Chief Minister Adityanath and I call Taj our cultural heritage. It is a heritage site and a major tourist spot. We are committed to upliftment of Agra and the Taj Mahal. From a tourist’s point of view, we are proud of Taj Mahal,” said Joshi.
Recently, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had said that Taj Mahal did not reflect Indian culture and that foreign dignitaries in India were now gifted copies of Bhagvad Gita instead of replicas of the monument.
Earlier in October, the UP government was criticised for deleting the profile of the 17th-century monument from UP’s official tourism booklet. The brochure listed destinations such as Gorakhnath temple in Gorakhpur, where CM Yogi Adityanath is a Mahant and also included plans for new attractions such as a tour of locations related to Ramayana in Ayodhya.
The government however promptly reacted and released a list of development works in Agra and around Taj Mahal approved by Yogi Adityanath government after it came to power on March 19 this year.
In October, Minister for Minority Affairs Chaudhary lakshmi Narayan had said that Taj Mahal was not a symbol of any particular religion. He had said that the monument had been ‘rightly kept out of tourism booklet and should be replaced with Guru Gorakhnath Peeth’.
Som is known for making controversial statements which could whip up communal passion. During the previous Samajwadi Party regime, the MlA was booked under NSA for allegedly triggering the worst-ever communal riots in Muzaffarnagar in 2013. The enquiry commission appointed by the then SP regime however exonerated him of the charges.
Meanwhile, Opposition parties condemned the remarks by the BJP MlA. “The BJP is preaching hatred. History can’t be changed. We must learn from history, both good and bad. These comments are by people who are stuck in history and have a narrow mindset,” said SP spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary.
Congress leader Virendra Madaan said, ``Red Fort in Delhi was also built by the ‘same group of traitors’. Will Prime Minister Narendra Modi stop hoisting the Indian flag from there.’’