Taj Mahal was built on Shiva temple: Katiyar

Lucknow, October 18

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Giving a new twist to the controversy surrounding the Taj Mahal, senior BJP leader Vinay Katiyar today said it was Lord Shiva's temple, called 'Tejo Mahal', which was converted into a mausoleum by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. He, however, said he did not want the monument to be demolished.

"It was Tejo Mahal, Lord Shiva's temple, where Shah Jahan buried his wife and turned it into a mausoleum," said Katiyar. "It was constructed by Hindu kings. The rooms and carvings there prove that it was a Hindu monument...

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"Like a Shiva temple, water drips from the Taj Mahal ceiling, which is not the case in any mausoleum anywhere, and it is like a Shivlinga," Katiyar, an accused in the Babri case, said. On Ram Temple, he hoped the court verdict would come in a year's time as the hearing was being held on a day-to-day basis. "I hope some way will be found to build Ram Temple or else we can construct it on the lines of Somnath temple... We will look at alternatives,” he said. — PTI