• Source:JND
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Two youths offered Gangajal at the Taj Mahal on Saturday believing in unfounded rumours that the 17th-century Mughal mausoleum in Agra was built after demolishing a Shiva temple. The incident occurred when they reached the Taj Mahal with Gangajal in a water bottle, proceeding to the basement door of the main mausoleum. One of the youths performed religious rituals, pouring the Gangajal at the entrance to the main basement, while the other filmed the entire act.

The Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabhaclaimed responsibility for the act. The Hindutva outfit members, Vinesh Chaudhary and Shyam, who offered the Gangajal, had travelled from Mathura to Agra. The organisation's leaders, Manish Pandit and Sanjay Jat, claimed that performing jal abhishek with Kanwar and Gangajal at the Taj Mahal is their birthright and vowed to continue such actions in the future.

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Hindu organisations, which regard the Taj Mahal as the Shiv Temple or Tejo Mahalaya, have long sought permission to perform religious rites there. Several petitions on this issue are currently pending in court. 

During Sawan, there have been recurring demands to conduct aarti and Jalabhishek at the Taj Mahal, which they claim is a Hindu temple. In previous years, Shiv Sainiks performed aarti from the Yamuna banks every Monday during Sawan.

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Earlier in the week, Meera Rathore, another member of the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha attempted to bring a Kanwar into the Taj Mahal but was stopped by police. However, on Saturday morning, two youths managed to reach the monument, one carrying a water bottle and the other recording the event. The CISF quickly apprehended them and handed them over to the police after interrogation.