Adityanath to visit Agra, says it doesn’t matter who built Taj Mahal

Agencies
October 17, 2017

Lucknow, Oct 17: Regardless of who built it, the Taj Mahal was a historical monument and its protection was the responsibility of the Uttar Pradesh government, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said today and announced that he would be visiting Agra next week to review tourism schemes.

The chief minister’s comments come a day after his colleague, BJP MLA Sangeet Som, questioned the Taj Mahal’s place in India’s heritage and said history would be rewritten to erase Mughal emperors from it.

“It is immaterial as to who and how the Taj Mahal was built... It was made by the sons of Bharat Mata... ,” the U.P Chief Minister said in Gorakhpur.

“It is famous the world over for its architecture... it is a historical monument and its protection and further development for tourism is the responsibility of the government,” he added.

Announcing that he would visit Agra on October 26 and that a ₹370 crore work plan for the city was in the offing, Adityanath said it was the duty of the Uttar Pradesh government to ensure that proper security and facilities were extended to tourists.

“Our government is working for tourism development for the Kalinjer Fort (in Banda) and working for the Rani Laxmibai’s Fort in Jhansi as well as the Chunar Fort (in Mirzapur) and has prepared schemes for their development,” he said.

In Lucknow, Principal Secretary (Information) Awanish Awasthi told media persons that the chief minister would also visit the Agra Fort and review other schemes as well for the city.

Som’s comments on the Taj Mahal had come after the Adityanath government reportedly omitted the 17th century monument from an official booklet on tourist destinations.

“Many people are pained to see the Taj Mahal was removed from the list of places (tourist destinations). What type of history?” he had asked during a public meeting in Meerut on Monday.

His comments prompted an angry response from All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen leader and Lok Sabha MP Asaduddin Owaisi who asked if the government would tell tourists not to visit the monument.

The BJP stepped into the row with party spokesperson G.V.L. Narasimha Rao describing Muslim rule in India as “barbaric and a period of incomparable intolerance” while asserting that its members could hold any opinion they want on specific monuments.

Following the reports about the Taj Mahal being left out of the booklet, the state government had issued a press release stating, “Tourism projects worth ₹370 crore are proposed, under which schemes worth ₹156 crore for development of parks and various facilities are meant for the Taj Mahal and its surrounding areas in Agra.”

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News Network
November 15,2024

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Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has killed or captured 69 terrorists linked to the Israeli spy agency Mossad during a major counterterrorism drill in the country's southeast, its spokesman says.  

General Ahmad Shafaei, the spokesman for the “Martyrs of Security” drill, said Friday that a total of 23 terrorists have been killed and another 46 arrested in various clean-up operations ever since the IRGC Ground Force launched it in the Sistan and Baluchestan province on November 1.

Seven terrorists have also turned themselves in during the period.

“The undeniable fact about terrorists is that they rely on arrogant powers, particularly the intelligence service of the wicked and vicious Zionist regime," Shafaei said.

“Unfortunately, weapons and munitions at terrorists’ disposal are among the most sophisticated ones in the world. This accounts for their heavy dependence.” 

The official stated that several members of the disbanded terror teams were non-Iranian nationals, who had been hired by foreign intelligence agencies to carry out acts of sabotage and terror inside Iran.

In a most recent operation, six terrorists were arrested and four others were eliminated, three of whom were non-Iranians, he added. 

On October 26, ten members of Iran's law enforcement forces were killed in a terrorist attack in the Gohar Kuh district of Taftan in the Sistan and Baluchestan province.

The so-called Jaish al-Adl terrorist group claimed responsibility for the assault, which was one of the deadliest in the province in recent months.

The group has carried out numerous terrorist attacks in Iran, primarily in Sistan and Baluchestan.

Its tactics include the abduction of border guards as well as targeting civilians and police stations within the province to incite chaos and disorder.

In January, Iran launched a military operation during which the headquarters of the Pakistan-based terrorist group was targeted in missile strikes, destroying its infrastructure.

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News Network
November 11,2024

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The Manipur Kuki MLAs have released a statement calling out Solicitor General Tushar Mehta's 'lies' in the Supreme Court. In a joint statement, the MLAs, including those from the Bharatiya Janata Party, said they had not had any meeting with the Chief Minister since May 3, 2023, nor did they intend to meet him in the future as “he was the mastermind behind the violence”.

As per the MLAs, the SG lied about state CM N Biren Singh speaking to Kuki MLAs to control the situation there, in order to halt a Supreme Court probe into the leaked tapes which allege that Singh has been complicit in the violence that broke out between Kukis and Meitis there.

"We...clarify that we have never had any meeting with Chief Minister, Shri N. Biren Singh since May 3, 2023, nor have any intention to meet him in future as he is the mastermind behind the violence and ethnic cleansing of our people from the Imphal valley, which is continuing till today, the latest being the brutal killing and burning of Mrs Zosangkim Hmar on November 7, 2024," the letter read, while condemning the recent 'barbaric' killing of the woman there, and noting the SG's assertion is 'tantamount' to misleading the top court.

“We, the undersigned ten MLAs, have come to know that during the Supreme Court hearing held on November 8, 2024, the Solicitor General of India submitted that ‘CM is meeting all Kuki MLAs and trying to bring the situation down to get peace’. In this connection, we hereby categorically state that this submission is a blatant lie and tantamount to misleading the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India,” the statement said.

The Supreme Court, while hearing a petition by a Kuki organisation, asked that it submit audio tapes to substantiate its claim that the Chief Minister was instrumental in inciting and organising violence in the northeastern State.

Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta orally informed the court that the Chief Minister was meeting all the Kuki-Zo MLAs and that peace in the State had come at a huge cost.

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News Network
November 11,2024

Udupi, Nov 11: A traveller reportedly lost ₹4.1 lakh after attempting to book a cab online in Udupi. 

At around 1:30 PM on November 7, the man from West Bengal searched for car rentals on Google and selected a website named "Shakti Car Rentals." Shortly after, he was contacted by someone claiming to be "Rohit Sharma," who directed him to pay a registration fee of ₹150 on the site.

After unsuccessful payment attempts via both his Canara Bank debit card and SBI credit card (without receiving an OTP), "Rohit Sharma" instructed him to pay the driver directly. But at 1:47 PM, he received messages showing deductions of ₹3.3 lakh from his SBI credit card and ₹80,056 from his Canara Bank debit card, totaling ₹4.1 lakh.

The complainant alleges fraud through a deceptive link disguised as a booking token fee. A case has been registered at Udupi Town Police Station.

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