Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) spokesperson Vinod Bansal said on Sunday that Delhi’s famous monument Qutub Minar was actually a ‘Vishnu Stambh’.
Bansal said that the structure was constructed from the material obtained by demolishing 27 Hindu-Jain temples.
He further said that the superimposed structure was constructed to harass the Hindu community.
Vinod Bansal was quoted by news agency ANI as saying, “Qutub Minar was actually ‘Vishnu Stambh’. Qutub Minar was built from material obtained after demolishing 27 Hindu-Jain temples. The superimposed structure just to tease the Hindu community. was created.”
Delhi | Qutub Minar was actually ‘Vishnu Stambh’. Qutub Minar was built from the material obtained by demolishing 27 Hindu-Jain temples. Superimposed structure was created to harass Hindu community: VHP spokesperson Vinod Bansa pic.twitter.com/Zx5UKLPe7s
— ANI (@ANI) April 10, 2022
Bansal’s statement came a day after the VHP demanded that the government rebuild the ancient temples in the Qutub Minar complex and allow the resumption of Hindu rituals and prayers there.
VHP leaders including Vinod Bansal had visited the complex of the memorial, which was designated as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1993.
“We demand that all the 27 temples that were demolished earlier at the site be rebuilt and Hindus be allowed to worship there,” he said.
National Memorial Authority (NMA) President and BJP leader Tarun Vijay said on Thursday that Idols of Ganesha were kept “derogatory” in the Qutub Minar complex, Vijay also said that he had taken up the issue with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) a year ago, but is yet to receive a reply to his letter.
According to the Delhi tourism website, the 73-metre-high Qutb Minar was built from materials obtained after 27 Hindu temples at the site were demolished following the defeat of the last Hindu kingdom of Delhi.
The website states, “An inscription above it [Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque] The eastern gate provocatively indicates that it was built from material obtained from the demolition of ’27 Hindu temples’.
“The first Muslim ruler of Delhi, Qutb-ud-din Aibak, built Qutub Minar in 1200 AD. The fifth and last floor as per the data available on the website.
(with agency input)
Read | Qutub Minar: Lesser Known Facts About World’s Tallest Brick Tower