A day after theBJP's Adityanath said the Taj Mahal is decidedly Indian, his party colleague Vinay Katiyar said that the monument used to be a Hindu temple that was destroyed by the Mughals, reported ANI.
“The Mughals destroyed our temple. Taj Mahal is a Hindu temple. Symbols of our Gods and Goddesses can be found there,” Katiyar told news agency ANI.
He also said the Mughals destroyed all Hindu places of worship.
He alleged that the Mughals removed a Shivling and built a mausoleum in its place. "The Taj Mahal is a Hindu temple. There are all the signs there of (Hindu) gods and goddesses, There used to be a Shivaling there which had water dripping on it from up top. That ling was removed and a mausoleum built there," said the BJP MP.
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Earlier this month, an Uttar Pradesh government booklet to promote tourist spots in the state omitted the Taj Mahal from its list of the State's historical sites.
Following this, last week, while speaking at an event in Meerut, BJP MLA Sangeet Som had questioned the Taj Mahal’s place in history and said his party’s governments at the Centre and state were working to erase the “blot” (kalank katha) of Akbar, Aurangzeb and Babur from history books.
Later on Tuesday, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath said the Taj Mahal was built by the blood and sweat of Indians.
"It does not matter who built it (Taj Mahal) and for what reason; it was built by blood and sweat of Indian labourers," said Adityanath, in what party insiders said was a reprimand to Som's comment.
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(With ANI Inputs)
