The Allahabad High Court has turned down a plea seeking a fresh Archaeological Survey of India study of the Taj Mahal to examine claims that it was originally built as a Hindu temple known as "Tejo Mahalaya."
According to a report by LiveLaw, a bench comprising Chief Justice Arun Bhansali and Justice Kshitij Shailendra found no grounds to direct a fresh archaeological exercise and dismissed the petition.
The PIL had sought a scientific and historical examination of the 17th-century monument, asking the ASI to investigate claims that the Taj Mahal was constructed over an ancient Shiva temple and to determine its "true historical character" through an expert survey.
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The court, however, declined to entertain the plea, observing that the relief sought lacked merit.
The ruling is in line with previous judicial decisions refusing to reopen long-standing debates over the monument's origins through public interest litigation.
The "Tejo Mahalaya" theory has resurfaced in courts and public discourse on several occasions, with petitioners seeking access to sealed rooms inside the Taj Mahal or demanding fresh archaeological investigations.
However, neither the ASI nor Indian courts have accepted these claims.
The Taj Mahal, located in Agra, was commissioned by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal and remains a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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The ASI has consistently maintained that historical records and archaeological evidence establish it as a Mughal-era mausoleum.
With the latest order, the high court has once again declined to intervene in the historical controversy surrounding the iconic monument.
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