A BJP leader has reignited controversy over the Taj Mahal by filing a petition claiming the monument was originally a Hindu temple. After a district court dismissed the plea, the petitioner approached the Allahabad High Court, which has issued notices to India’s central government and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) seeking their stance on conducting a survey inside the monument’s basement. The petitioner alleges that remnants of a temple remain hidden in 22 sealed rooms beneath the structure.

Historians cited in the report, including Dr. Ruchika Sharma, reject such claims, emphasizing that all historical and architectural evidence confirms the Taj Mahal was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal. They note that similar theories trace back to writer P.N. Oak, whose assertions that the Taj was once a Shiva temple were dismissed by the Supreme Court and contradicted by ASI findings.

Dr. Sharma questioned the court’s renewed interest, arguing that the issue had already been legally settled and that reopening it risks undermining established historical consensus.