UP CM says Taj Mahal is a gem, vows to make it a tourist hub

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath has refused to enter the controversy over why Taj Mahal was built or how it was built and said his government will do everything to protect the monument and make it an important place for tourists.

Adityanath who joined BJP workers on Thursday to clean the premises of the western gate parking lot to promote Swacchh Bharat Mission, also watched a presentation by the Archaeological Survey of India.

Addressing a rally at the Government Inter College grounds in Agra, the UP CM said Taj Mahal is ''India's rare gem'', and said the government was committed to its conservation.

He wore a mask and gloves and swept a parking lot within the Taj complex, spent few minutes inside the mausoleum, laid a foundation stone for a tourist pathway connecting the Taj to the Agra fort, and waved and smiled at Indian and foreign tourists.

Adityanath's visit comes days after the party's leaders and ministers made controversial statements and a UP tourism booklet allegedly failed to list the 17th century monument among monuments in the state.

Also, BJP MLA Sangeet Som had questioned Taj Mahal's place in history and vowed to erase the ''blot'' of Mughal kings from history books.

Adityanath reiterated his previous remarks that the monument was built ''by the blood and sweat'' of India's sons and labourers. ''Hum is mein na jaayen, ki Taj kyu bana, kab bana, kaise bana. Mahatwapurn ye hai ki Taj Mahal ka nirmaan Bharat ke mazdooron aur kisaano ke khoon aur pasine se bana hai (We should not delve deeper into the details of why, when and how the Taj Mahal was built. What is important is that it was built by the blood and sweat of India's farmers and labourers),'' he said.

''Bharat ke vaastav ka ek anmol ratna jisne duniya ko diya hai. Aur jisne duniya ke paryatakon ko apni aur akarshit kiya hai.Us se Agra ka vyavasai badhta hai, paryatan badhta hai. Toh uski sangrakshan…ki jimmedari hum sabhko nibhaani padhegi, (It is a unique gem that India has given to the world. And that attracts the world's tourists. It increases Agra's trade and tourism. That's why we all have to share the responsibility for its protection.''

BJP MLAs from North Agra, however, told reporters that the Mughals demolished a temple before building it. ''Mughals first demolished the Shiva temple and then built the Taj Mahal. It is a fact,'' Jagan Prasad Garg told reporters, in line with earlier comments made by BJP's Vinay Katiyar.

Adityanath spent considerable time at a rally later in the day to emphasise the importance of Agra as a city housing five World Heritage Sites - the Taj, Agra Fort, Fatehpur Sikri, Sikandra and Itimad-ud-Daulah's tomb.