ASI Releases Pictures Of 22 Underground Rooms Of Taj Mahal & There's No Sign Of 'Tejo Mahalaya'

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has released photographs of two spots where maintenance work was underway recently in closed underground cells on the riverside of the Taj Mahal.

The ASI has tried to diffuse the controversy and tensions over the "history" of the Taj Mahal, which some claim to be built upon a Shiva temple and is hiding idols in locked rooms underneath the structure.

Agra ASI chief R K Patel said that the pictures are live on the ASI website as a part of the January 2022 newsletter and anyone can view them by visiting their website.

ASI

The pictures reveal that nothing much really is going on in the sealed rooms of the iconic monument.

Allahabad high court pulls up petitioner

The Allahabad high court on Thursday, May 12, pulled up a Bharatiya Janata Party leader for his petition seeking to open the doors of 22 sealed rooms within the Taj Mahal to enable research that would lead to the alleged ¡°real history¡± of the structure.

A division bench of Justice DK Upadhyay and Justice Subhash Vidyarthi of the Lucknow bench of the high court dismissed the petition, according to Bar and Bench.

The petition had been filed by Rajneesh Singh, identified as the media in charge of BJP¡¯s Ayodhya unit.

The petitioner added, ¡°If there are many hidden things under the Taj Mahal that should be in public (sic).¡±

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The bench told the petitioner, ¡°If they have said that rooms are closed because of security reasons, then that's the information. If you're not satisfied, then challenge it.¡±

The high court further said to Singh, ¡°Please enroll yourself in MA, then go for NET, JRF and if any university denies you research on such a topic, then come to us.¡±

When the petitioner insisted on being allowed to go to ¡°those rooms¡±, the court remarked, ¡°Tomorrow will you come and ask to go to the chambers of Honourable Judges?¡±

The plea, filed by petitioner Dr Rajneesh Singh, according to Live Law, contends that the Taj Mahal was a Shiva Temple, known as Tejo Mahalaya.

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