COURT NO. 34

CIVIL   MISC. WRIT PETITION  NO. 36818 OF 2004

Institute of Rewriting  Indian History & Anr. ------------------------Petitioner

                              Versus

Union of India & Ors. ---------------------------------------------Respondents

Hon’ble Dr. B.S. Chauhan, J.

Hon’ble Dilip Gupta, J.

(By The Court)

                    This Writ petition has been filed as a Public  Interest Litigation seeking the relief of declaration in the nature of mandamus for  notifying that Taj Mahal was not built by Shahjahan; remove all the notices displayed by the Archeological Survey of India showing Taj Mahal premises crediting Shahjahan as its creator and further desist from writing /publishing/proclaiming/ propagating and teaching about Shahjahan being the Author of Taj Mahal and stop and discontinue the free entry in Taj Mahal premises on Friday in the week. A further direction has been sought that the authorities be further directed to open the locks of upper and lower portions of the four- storied building of Taj Mahal having number of rooms; to remove the bricked up walls built later blocking such rooms therein; and further to bring out the idols and inscriptions hidden in the Taj Mahal by Shahjahan ‘s order and declare  the same as a Hindu Temple.

                   We have heard Shri  Y. K. Saxena, learned Counsel for the petitioner at leangth and Sri K.C. Sinha, learned Counsel appearing for the respondents and have perused the averment made in the petition as well as supplementary affidavit.

                       Shri Saxena, learned Counsel appearing for the petitioners has vehemently submitted that originally, there was a Hindu Temple over which by raising superstructures, the Taj Mahal was built by Shahjahan . Thus , in fact, a Hindu temple was converted into a “Majar”. In support of his contention, he has taken us through literature, mainly, written by Shri P. N. Oak  and the same include” The Greatest Historical discovery of Modern Times- The Taj Mahal is a Temple Palace” published by Hindi Sahitya  Sadan, 2003 Edition, “ Taj Mahal – Tejo –Mahalaya Shiva Mandir Hai” 1998 Edition, published by the same publisher; Fatehpur seekri Ek Hindu Nagar”, Agra Ka Lal Kila Hindu Bhawan Hai” in Hindi 1998 Edition;, “ Some Blunders  of Indian Historical Research” 2003 Edition; Thatta Islamic Architecture” Written by Professor Ahmad Hasa Dani, Professor, Emerritus Quaid- I – Azam University, Islamabad, published by Institute of Islamic History. Culture & Civilization, Islamabad, Pakistan, ‘Manu Smirit’, and on the basis of the same, he tried to convince us that us is entitled for the aforesaid relief.

                On the other hand, Shri K.C. Sinha, leaned counsel appearing for the respondents submitted that the petition raises disputed questions of facts; it is neither desirable nor feasible to decide the factual controversy in writ jurisdiction and the petition can not be said to be in Public Interest. He, therefore, submitted that the petition should not be entertained and should be dismissed.

            We have considered the rival submissions made by the learned Counsel for the parties and gone through the voluminous literature submitted by Shri Saxena.

         We are , however of the considered opinion that petition raises disputed question of facts, which can not be adjudicated upon in a Writ Jurisdiction. We therefore declined to entertain  this petition and dismissed it with the liberty to the petitioner to approach the appropriate forum, if so advised.

21. 02. 2005                               Sd. Dr. B. S. Chauhan J.

                                                      Sd. Dilip Gupta, J.

AHA