05-21-2005, 04:10 AM
Didn't we have a Waqf boad thread?
Waqf board climbs down from demand on Taj Mahal
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Lucknow, April 19 (IANS) The Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board seems to have retracted its earlier demand for complete control over the Taj Mahal and is now saying it would be content if the monument was just registered as a waqf in the records.
In what appears to be a climb down from the earlier position asking for a formal take over of the monument by the waqf board, state Urban Development Minister Azam Khan said: "We would be content if Taj Mahal is entered as a waqf in the board's records; we are not asking for its possession any more."
The demand had triggered an ugly row over India's most famous monument in Agra with Hindu rightwing groups like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) saying that the mausoleum by Mughal emperor Shahjahan for his wife Mumtaz Mahal was built on a Shiva temple.
Board president Hafiz Usman agreed with Khan, saying that that <b>registration of the Taj as a waqf -- "trust" under Islamic law and tombs are listed as waqf properties which may include other buildings as well -- would prevent any mischief by the VHP or its hardliner allies.
"Besides, that will also entitle the waqf board to seven percent of the revenue earned by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in the name of Taj Mahal," he said.</b>
The ASI manages the Taj Mahal, which houses the graves of Shahjahan and his wife, as it does all national monuments.
The waqf board has issued notices to the ASI, demanding formal possession of the monument. An ASI representative will appear before the board Tuesday.
According to Usman: "ASI should not have any objection to this proposal as other heritage monuments like Fatehpur Sikri are already registered as waqf property."
Khan added: "The fact that the monument is a tomb with has two graves is the most potent testimony to the waqf board's claim. No matter how many precious stones with which a grave might be studded a tomb remains a tomb."
The minister expressed apprehensions that the Taj Mahal could go the way of the 16th century Babri mosque, pulled down by violent Hindu mobs in 1992.
Khan, who has also been convenor of the Babri Masjid Action Committee (BMAC), told IANS: "The campaign by VHP leaders, Ashok Singhal and Pravin Togadia, terming Taj Mahal as an ancient Shiva temple appears to be part of a vicious design to take this wonder monument the same way as Babri Masjid."
Retorted Vinay Katiyar, former Bharatiya Janata Party state president: "If the Sunni Waqf Board can claim right over Taj Mahal, we have a stronger claim which is supported by carbon dating of certain stones used in the construction."
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Waqf board climbs down from demand on Taj Mahal
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Lucknow, April 19 (IANS) The Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board seems to have retracted its earlier demand for complete control over the Taj Mahal and is now saying it would be content if the monument was just registered as a waqf in the records.
In what appears to be a climb down from the earlier position asking for a formal take over of the monument by the waqf board, state Urban Development Minister Azam Khan said: "We would be content if Taj Mahal is entered as a waqf in the board's records; we are not asking for its possession any more."
The demand had triggered an ugly row over India's most famous monument in Agra with Hindu rightwing groups like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) saying that the mausoleum by Mughal emperor Shahjahan for his wife Mumtaz Mahal was built on a Shiva temple.
Board president Hafiz Usman agreed with Khan, saying that that <b>registration of the Taj as a waqf -- "trust" under Islamic law and tombs are listed as waqf properties which may include other buildings as well -- would prevent any mischief by the VHP or its hardliner allies.
"Besides, that will also entitle the waqf board to seven percent of the revenue earned by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in the name of Taj Mahal," he said.</b>
The ASI manages the Taj Mahal, which houses the graves of Shahjahan and his wife, as it does all national monuments.
The waqf board has issued notices to the ASI, demanding formal possession of the monument. An ASI representative will appear before the board Tuesday.
According to Usman: "ASI should not have any objection to this proposal as other heritage monuments like Fatehpur Sikri are already registered as waqf property."
Khan added: "The fact that the monument is a tomb with has two graves is the most potent testimony to the waqf board's claim. No matter how many precious stones with which a grave might be studded a tomb remains a tomb."
The minister expressed apprehensions that the Taj Mahal could go the way of the 16th century Babri mosque, pulled down by violent Hindu mobs in 1992.
Khan, who has also been convenor of the Babri Masjid Action Committee (BMAC), told IANS: "The campaign by VHP leaders, Ashok Singhal and Pravin Togadia, terming Taj Mahal as an ancient Shiva temple appears to be part of a vicious design to take this wonder monument the same way as Babri Masjid."
Retorted Vinay Katiyar, former Bharatiya Janata Party state president: "If the Sunni Waqf Board can claim right over Taj Mahal, we have a stronger claim which is supported by carbon dating of certain stones used in the construction."
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