Allahabad High Court rejects petition seeking to open 22 closed doors in Taj Mahal

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Thursday dismissed the petition seeking to open 22 locked rooms inside the Taj Mahal, thereby putting at rest the attempt to rake up the "alleged history" of the monument.

When the matter was taken up by a Bench of Justices DK Upadhyay and Subhash Vidyarthi, the petitioner urged the court to allow opening of the rooms of the monument in light of "freedom of information". The Bench, however, took exception to the plea, stating, ‘‘Tomorrow you'll come and ask us to open the chambers of Hon'ble judges? Please, don't make a mockery of the PIL system."

The court also pulled up the petitioner who claims to be the BJP media in charge in Ayodhya district. Singh had filed a Public Interest Litigation in the high court seeking directives to constitute a fact-finding committee to “look for important historical evidence” like idols and inscriptions that are believed to be hidden inside the Taj Mahal on the orders of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.

During the hearing, the Bench told the petitioner that such debates were welcome in informal settings, but not in a court of law. "I welcome you to debate the issue with us in the drawing room and not in a court of law."

The petitioner argued that there was a truth that the citizens needed to know about the Taj Mahal. He said his main concern was about the closed rooms, and everyone should know what was behind those doors. "I'm not on the fact that the land belongs to Lord Shiva or Allah-o-Akbar," he clarified.

The judges said the petition has been filed without any research and groundwork. He said that it is not the duty of the courts to find out as to who built the Taj Mahal. The court is not trained and equipped for such things. Justice Uppadhya pulled up the petitioner and said that he must do proper research first, and then file a case. The court even advised the petitioner to go to a university and study history.

"Go and research. Do M.A. Do PhD. Then choose such a topic and if any institute disallows you to research on such a topic, then come to us.’’