Swamy says Taj built on stolen property; it may meet Babri fate, fears Azam

Azam Khan said Babri Masjid was destroyed as people believed there was a temple, Taj Mahal may now be destroyed

Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan on Wednesday said he fears Taj Mahal would meet the same fate as Babri Masjid, while retorting to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Vinay Katiyar's statement describing Taj Mahal as a "Hindu temple".

"If Babri Masjid can be destroyed, then any building in the country can be pulled down. In such a situation, it will be no surprise if Taj Mahal is also destroyed some day. If Babri Masjid was demolished in the name of Ram Mandir, then these people can do anything," Azam Khan told ANI.

He further said if Babri Masjid was destroyed as people believed there was a temple, then no place of worship in the country was safe.

"During the temple-mosque issue at that time, there was a high court and the Supreme Court stay, but still the mosque was destroyed. I firmly believe that the Taj Mahal is set to meet that same fate. But because there is so much international attention on the issue, the monument is still standing, " Khan said, referring to the 1992 destruction of the 16th century mosque built on Mughal emperor Babur's orders.

Katiyar courted controversy on Wednesday when he claimed that the Mughal mausoleum, Taj Mahal, was a Hindu temple and that its name should be changed. He said that the Taj Mahal was known as Tejo Mahal and had a 'Shivlinga', which was later removed from the monument.

Katiyar's statement comes a day after, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath gave a clear snub to BJP MLA Sangeet Som for stirring the Taj Mahal controversy, stating that "it does not matter who built it and for what reason; it was built by blood and sweat of the Indian labourers".

Taj Mahal sits on stolen property: Subramanian Swamy

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday said he has access to documents that suggest the property where Taj Mahal was built was stolen by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan from kings of Jaipur.

"There is evidence on record that Shah Jahan forced the Raja-Maharajas of Jaipur to sell this land on which Taj Mahal presently is standing, and he gave them a compensation of forty villages, which is nothing compared to the value of the property," Swamy told ANI.

Swamy added he will release the copies of the evidence to the media soon.

"The documents also suggest that there was a temple on the property. But it is still not clear whether Taj Mahal was built after the demolition of a temple," asserted Swamy.

He further said that the BJP has no intention of demolishing Taj Mahal, but only want three temples out of thousands demolished under the Muslim rule.

"We have decided that of all the temples demolished, during the Islamic period, we want only three, which are Ayodhya's Ram, Krishna's Mathura and Kashi Vishwanath in Varanasi. These three, once they are restored, we won't be concerned about the remaining forty thousand," said Swamy.

The iconic monument is caught in a storm since BJP MLA Sangeet Som said it was built by traitors and could not be included in the Indian history.

Following Som's statement another BJP leader Vinay Katiyar courted controversy on Wednesday when he claimed that the Taj Mahal was a Hindu temple and that its name should be changed.