Two arrested for allegedly 'defiling' Taj Mahal
Agra, Aug 3: Police arrested two youths from the Taj Mahal premises on Saturday after they were seen pouring water from a bottle there. A local right-wing Hindu outfit claimed that the two were its members and had offered holy 'Gangajal' as they believe the monument is a Hindu temple.
Suraj Kumar Rai, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Agra City), said the two youths were arrested following a written complaint by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel posted inside the Taj Mahal.
"The youths entered the premises as tourists. The complaint said that the youths were seen pouring water inside the Taj Mahal premises," he told reporters.
They have been arrested after the incident and a case has been filed at the Tajganj Police Station, Rai said.
The case has been registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 223 (disobedience to order promulgated by public servant), 298 (injuring or defiling place of worship), and 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings), the police said, adding the matter is being investigated in detail.
A purported video of the incident also appeared on social media.
A local Hindu organisation Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha (ABHM) has claimed that youths are its members and the two offered water of the holy Ganges on the premises as it is a Hindu temple, 'Tejo Mahalay'.
The incident comes just days after a member of the group carrying Kanwar on her shoulders tried to enter the Taj Mahal to offer Gangajal.
However, she was stopped by the policemen deployed at the barrier of the west gate of the Taj Mahal.
In a purported video of the Saturday incident, a youth is seen pouring water on the floor above the locked basement where the graves of Mughal emperor Shahjahan and his wife Mumtaz are located.
Sanjay Jaat, a spokesperson of the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha (ABHM), said the two arrested youths -- Vinesh Chaudhary and Shyam -- are its members.
"They entered the Taj Mahal. One of them offered 'Gangajal' inside the premises of the Taj Mahal which was a Hindu temple of Lord Shiva. We are proud of it and will keep doing it," he said.
इन बेवकुफो को कोई समझाओ कीं सावन में गंगा जल शिवलिंग पर चढ़ाया जाता है ना कीं कब्र पर
— Gaurav Yadav (@ygauravyadav) August 3, 2024
आगरा :ताजमहल के अंदर कब्र पर अखिल भारत हिन्दू महासभा के कार्यकर्ताओं ने गंगाजल चढ़ाया।#tajmahal pic.twitter.com/6s0vDrc0CO
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
