A petition has been filed in the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court seeking a direction to the Archaeological Survey of India to open 20 rooms inside the Taj Mahal in Agra to ascertain whether there are Hindu sculptures and inscriptions.
Rajneesh Singh, media in-charge of Ayodhya district of Bharatiya Janata Party has filed this petition, which is yet to be heard. Advocate Rudra Vikram Singh is representing the petitioner in the court. Dr Rajneesh Singh said that there is an old dispute related to the Taj Mahal. He said that 20 rooms inside the Taj Mahal complex remain closed and no one is allowed inside. Singh said that it is believed that these rooms have idols of Hindu deities.
Dr Rajneesh Singh said, “I have filed a petition in the High Court seeking a direction to the ASI to open 20 rooms so that the facts can be ascertained. There is no harm in opening these rooms and putting an end to all disputes.” Through the petition, the petitioner has sought a direction from the court to the state government to constitute a committee which will examine these rooms and collect evidence related to Hindu idols or scriptures there.
Rajnish Singh said that he is trying to find out facts about 20 locked rooms of Taj Mahal from 2020 through Right to Information Act (RTI). In 2020, he had filed an RTI with the Union Ministry of Culture seeking information about the rooms.
Dr. Rajneesh Singh further said, “From 2020 onwards, I am trying to find out the facts about the locked rooms of Taj Mahal. I had filed RTI. In response to the RTI, the Union Ministry of Culture informed the Central Information Commission that these rooms were closed due to security reasons. He further said that no information was given about these locked rooms.