BJP MP Diya says Taj belongs to Jaipur family

Jaipur: The land on which the Taj Mahal was built originally belonged to Jaipur's ruler Jai Singh and it was acquired by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, BJP MP Diya Kumari claimed on Wednesday, asserting that records are available with the erstwhile Jaipur royal family.

She also supported a petition in the Allahabad High Court, seeking a fact-finding inquiry into the "history" of the Taj Mahal and also opening of the doors of its "22 rooms" to see "the truth, whatever it is". It should be investigated what was there before the monument was built and people have the right to know.

There are records available with the Jaipur family and it would provide these, if required, Kumari, a member of the erstwhile Jaipur royal family, said "Compensation was given in lieu of the land but how much was it, whether it was accepted or not, I cannot say this because I have not studied the records which are there in our 'pothikhana'. But the land belonged to our family and Shah Jahan had acquired it," she told reporters here.