ASI says tomb was not protected

NEW DELHI: A day after TOI highlighted the whitewashing of a protected monument in Mehrauli, agencies continued to pass the buck. On Tuesday a team of Archaeological Survey of India officials visited the spot and said that it was the other monument and a wall of a mosque in the same compound that was protected and not the one that was whitewashed.
“There are six centrally protected monuments among the others located inside the Mehrauli Archaeological Park and this tomb isn’t one of them,” said Atul Bhargava, superintending archaeologist, ASI.
But a visit to the site makes it clear that it’s a maze with very little clarity on which structure is protected and which is not. Sometimes a common wall separates a protected and an unprotected site.
“The mosque is protected but the tomb isn’t. We didn’t whitewash the monument and it isn’t our responsibility,” said Bhargava. Even Delhi Wakf Board president Rana Siddique said that even if it is their property, still nobody has the right to whitewash it. “I couldn’t check whether the property is listed with us or not but it shouldn’t have been painted. But if there is a mosque then prayers will be carried out and people can stay in it.”
As per ASI, DDA is the land-owning agency and even outside the park DDA boards have been put up. However, on the freshly white-painted walls, Delhi Wakf Board is written in black, laying their claim on the property.
The mystery behind as to which agency painted and defaced the 14th century Tomb of Khan Shahid is still unknown. Even ministry of culture has ordered a probe in the matter. “We will definitely look into the matter,” said Union minister of culture, Mahesh Sharma.