Taj Mahal in Danger, Waqf Board Member Tells International Monuments Body

New Delhi: The controversy over Taj Mahal has reached foreign shores. Advocate and member of the Central Waqf Council of India, Dr Syed Ejaz Abbasi, has written a letter to the International Council of Monuments and Sites complaining “against Uttar Pradesh government for abandoning the historical Taj Mahal, Agra and infusing hatred against history of Mughals.”

Expressing concerns over the safety of the monument built by the Mughal ruler Shah Jahan, Abbasi said, “I am writing this letter to you as there is the likelihood of injury or destruction being caused to the monument. I fear that people in or out of the government might harm Taj Mahal structure. As earlier there have been attacks.”

“There is an infusion of hatred and remarks with a communal bias against Mughals – (the dead Muslims). The citizens of my country have complained about this. There are other complaints as well like the misuse of waqf properties and administrative frauds,” he added.

The world heritage monument has been in the midst of controversy over the last few days after BJP leader Sangeet Som called it a “blot on Indian country” and another BJP leader Vinay Katiyar said that it was a Shiva Temple that was destroyed by Shah Jahan.

Abbasi further said that despite 13% of India’s population being Muslim, there are systematic governmental policies and decisions made to demean, degrade the Mughals. “The BJP is trying to communalise past wars and battles,” he said.

Abbasi even went on to name BJP leaders like Sakshi Maharaj, Vijay Rupani and CM UP Yogi Adityanath in his letter and said that they were unnecessarily abusing long-deceased Muslim rulers. “In such a hateful, biased environment it is advisable to transfer the Maqbara Dargah over to the UP Waqf Board or a special body be constituted as per special laws enacted for the management of Ajmer Sharif.”

Clarifying his need to seek international attention to the matter, Abbasi told News18 that he wrote the letter because there are consistent attacks on Taj Mahal by the government. “The same thing happened in Palmyra and whatever part of it is lost, cannot be reconstructed. As a concerned society we have to save the Taj Mahal from attacks."