Marble and diamonds: Taj Mahal in Bangladesh

by Dr. Abdul Ruff

(December 27, New Delhi, Sri Lnaka Guardian) Mumbai Taj hotel, a former Britishers’ hospital, has been attacked recently by the "terrorists" and the investigations are on to nab the culprits, if they are non-state ones. But a life-size replica of the Taj Mahal in Agra , often described as the world's most beautiful building and, therefore, a permanent source of envy of many non-Muslims in and around India, is due to open for visitors in Bangladesh. The replica has been built by a Bangladeshi filmmaker. Ahsanullah Moni said he wanted his countrymen to experience the beauty of the Indian monument even if they were too poor to travel to see the original. The $58m (£39m) replica has been built in Sonargaon, a small town in the Bangladeshi countryside. Work on the surrounding grounds and ponds have still not been completed. Only then will Bangladeshis be able to judge whether Moni has truly copied the beauty and purity of the original wonder on marbles Taj Mahal.

The 17th Century Taj was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, a Muslim, as a tomb for his beloved queen, Muslim Mumtaz Mahal. The emperor is buried next to his queen in the monument in the northern Indian city of Agra , which is visited by millions every year. It took 20 years and 20,000 workers to build the original Taj. Recently Hindu al-Qaeda activists, under security support, entered the Taj to conduct Hindu religious offerings there against the law. Moni, who is a successful director of Bangladeshi films, says he hopes his replica, which has been built an hour's drive from the capital Dhaka , will also attract foreign visitors. Thanks to modern technology, construction of Moni's Taj has taken five years and fewer people. But it has been neither easy nor cheap. Moni has imported marble and granite from Italy and diamonds from Belgium . Architects were sent to India to copy the dimensions of the original.

The Moghul white marble mausoleum, situated on the banks of the river Yamuna, is sometimes known as a teardrop on the cheek of time. The Taj, built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan as a shrine for his wife, is one of India ’s most protected sites. The shrine, which has just celebrated its 350th anniversary, was closed at night because of security worries. But now the Supreme Court has ruled the famous monument to love can open five nights a month. A maximum 400 people will be allowed to see it each night.

Taj Mahal has been on hit list of several groups including the Hindutva Jihadi forces that see this Islamic wonder a threat to Hindutva moorings. India 's greatest tourist attraction marked its 350th anniversary in 2004. November, 2004Taj Mahal opened its doors to the public for night-time viewing for the first time in 20 years. Night visits to the Taj, once a romantic highlight of any visit to India , were banned in 1984 amid fears that militant Sikhs battling the government would attack it. The Sikh insurgency ended in the mid-1990s, but Indian authorities remained reluctant to let visitors back to the Taj after sunset. During the height of cold tensions between India and Pakistan in 2001, officials drew up plans to camouflage the Taj to disguise it from possible Pakistani air attacks as suggested by intelligence services. . But now the Supreme Court has ruled the famous monument to love can open five nights a month. A maximum 400 people will be allowed to see it each night.

Centuries old, Taj has survived the environmental attacks. Earlier, two Indian historian warned the Taj Mahal may already be tilting and could crumble or sink if the government did not pay immediate attention to its ecological setting. The historians feared the drying out of the nearby Yamuna River might have affected the Taj Mahal's foundations and wanted urgent action. Yamuna used to be full of water to maintain the monument's balance and absorb tectonic shocks. Now that the river bed is dry, the Taj is exposed to the elements.

On the eve of the anniversary, theIndian authorities launched an urgent investigation after historians reported that the Taj Mahal was leaning and in danger of sinking. The government in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh had asked a committee of experts to report back in a week. It worked under the guidance of the Archaeological Survey of India - the federal body responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of historical sites and monuments.


Now one of world wonders, Taj was designated as a Unesco World Heritage site in 1983, meaning the Indian Supreme Court must rule on major works or changes likely to impact on the site. The Taj Mahal, revered as a symbol of love, was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan as a tomb for his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth. The monument, in the city of Agra , drew over three million tourists last year, far more than any other Indian tourist attraction. Hindu fanatics create stories ill of Shah Jahan and even write lies with government funding that Taj Mahal was also a temple.

In the wake of the Indian Hindutva efforts to brand anything based on Islamic culture as bad and tricks to lay claim over Taj Mahal as a Hindu site. the Hindutva forces might one day lay claim over this new Islamic monument in Bangladesh as well. Bangladesh government, therefore, must make sure they exhibit the fact its is an Islamic cultural artifact and that there are no symbols and signs ascribing the Taj monument to any Hindu dynasty. Hopefully, the Bangladeshis won't commit blunders that the Mughals did while building the wonderful marvel in marbles in Agra and they will make sure the Bangla Taj version is completely and hundred percent Islamic so that non-Muslims in Bangladesh or India or elsewhere do not make any illegal claims over that marvel as Indian Hindutva researchers supported by state agencies do in India over Taj Mahal.

Even otherwise, Islam and the global Muslims face a lot problems from anti-Islamic forces on account of West-sponsored terrorism. Hindu Jehadis in India, after the ghastly destruction of the grand Babri Mosque in 1992 by Hindu terrorists, have been intent on pulling down as many historic mosques as they could with the support of Indian governments and Hindu politicians as well as tacit endorsement by Indian judiciary as a matter of supporting Hindu Indian "interests", lay claims over wonderful Islamic heritages and also defame Islam at the same time. Bangladesh should be cautious about Hindu Jehadis and ensure the monument is 100 per cent Islamic. .

Yes, history tells us, better precaution than cure! - Sri Lanka Guardian