Yogi picks up broom to clean Taj Mahal, says monument belongs to no religion

In the midst of inflammatory statements regarding Taj Mahal given by BJP leaders Vinay Katiyar and Shahnawaz Hussein today, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visited the monument in an effort to calm down the anti-BJP sentiments growing in Agra.

When Yogi Adityanath visited Taj Mahal, the UP CM swept the road near the Western Gate of the monument with a broom in a symbolic gesture to promote 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan'.

Entering the monument accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Dinesh Sharma, UP Tourism Minister Rita Bahuguna Joshi, National SC/ST Commission Chairman and Agra MP Ram Shankar Katheria and a number of other BJP leaders, Yogi appreciated Taj's glory and said that the Taj Mahal belongs to no religion and it has been constructed with the blood and sweat of Indian labourers, which makes it as Indian as any other pre-Mughal monument.

He said that Agra is a world-class tourism city with five world-heritage monuments which greets over



40,000 to 50,000 tourists every day, but his target is to raise this number to three lakh and more per day by making Agra better equipped with tourism-centric facilities and a safe tourism destination.

Yogi spent over 12 minutes inside the central room of Taj Mahal, containing the graves of emperor Shahjahan and his wife Mumtaz. Archaeological Survey of India Superintending Archaeologist Dr Bhuvan Vikram accompanied the UP CM during his visit and informed him of the various nuances of the monument's architecture and history.

Yogi also visited the Kalakruti Auditorium near the Taj Mahal where he saw the live musical show 'Mohabbat - The Taj', played daily for tourists at the Auditorium by the Ashok Oswal Group.

YOGI'S DEVELOPMENT SCHEMES FOR AGRA

Earlier, Yogi announced developmental schemes worth Rs 235 crore for Agra, including a 'walkway' between Agra Fort and the Taj Mahal and a rubber check-dam at Nagla Paima to raise the water level behind the Taj Mahal.