Documents show converted temple was tomb, says INTACH

A day after a report emerged regarding the alleged conversion of a small tomb into a temple at Safdarjung Enclave's Humayunpur village, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) Director-Projects Amit Kumar said the structure has been mentioned as tomb in historical documents.

Speaking to ANI, Kumar said the structure is a national heritage, is some 500 years old and dates back to the Lodi period.

"As per a document written in 1929-30, it is mentioned as a tomb. To me, it is a structure and its value is that its 500 years old, that is what is important to me. Religion is not important for me at this time, all that matters is the structure," Kumar said.

He said two months ago, the property had not been damaged or painted, but two days ago it was found painted and people worshipping over there.

"We were not allowed to enter into the structure (for restoration). We came to know yesterday that the situation has changed. The step taken by the people is incorrect," Kumar said.

He said that the steps taken by the locals are not correct and need to be rectified so that such incidents are not repeated.

"One cannot make the national heritage into personal property," he said.

Meanwhile, the locals claimed that they have been worshipping the structure as a temple since long and denied the reports of changing it into a temple.

"Since childhood, we have worshipped it as a temple. The structure has been a temple for as long as we can remember, it was re-painted recently," said a local.