In an attempt to douse the raging controversy over Taj Mahal Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that he would be visiting Agra next week to review tourism schemes there saying it is immaterial as who built this historic monument. This statement came a day after BJP law maker Sangeet Som had created controversy saying that Taj Mahal is a ‘blot on Indian culture’.
CM cleared the cloud on Tuesday when he said in Gorakhpur that it is immaterial as how built Taj Mahal. What matters is this is a Historical monument and its protection and further development for tourism is responsibility of State Government.
He however gave a nationalistic colour to the controversy saying “ … It was made by the sons of Bharat Mata... ,”
As per programme released by Department of Information and Publicity CM will visit Agra on October 26 and review the development schemes there. He is also likely to visit Taj Mahal. Government has marked Rs 370 crore for development of Agra which includes Rs 157 crore for development of Parks around Taj.
“Our government is working for tourism development for the Kalinjer Fort (in Banda) and working for the Rani laxmibai’s Fort in Jhansi as well as the Chunar Fort (in Mirzapur) and has prepared schemes for their development,” he said. Adityanath, who will attend mega event Deepotsava in Ayodhya on October 18 is expected to visit Chitrakoot, another Hindu religious destination, on October 22 to launch several development schemes related to Ramayana tourism circuit. This is a change is stance of Yogi towards Taj Mahal because since Yogi has taken over as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Taj Mahal had always remained in the eye in storm. last month he had said that Taj Mahal did not reflect Indian culture and ordered the foreign dignitaries should be presented a copy of Bhagvad Gita instead of replicas of the monument – as was done earlier.
The Yogi government even deleted the profile of the 17thcentury monument from UP’s official tourism booklet. The brochure listed destinations such as Gorakhnath Peeth (temple) in Gorakhpur, where Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is a Mahant Monk, and also included plans for new attractions such as a tour of locations related to Ramayana in Ayodhya.
Other BJP leaders had supported Yogi as Minority Affairs Minister Chaudhary laxmi Narayan Chaudhary defended government action saying that the Taj Mahal was not a symbol of any particular religion. He had said last month that the monument had been ‘rightly kept out of tourism booklet and should be replaced with Gorakhnath Peeth’.
Earlier BJP MP Vinay Katiyar had claimed the Taj Mahal was actually a Shiv temple built by Raja Jai Singh and named ‘Tejo Mai Mahal’ (shining palace).
BJP however distanced itself from the controversial remarks as its general secretary Vijay Bahadur Pathak said that Taj Mahal is India’s pride and nobody should question its heritage. “Whatever Som said is his personal view. BJP has nothing to do with it,” he said in lucknow.