BJP leader's book rakes up controversy before release

Lucknow: A book written by veteran BJP leader Lalji Tandon that will be formally rele-ased by vice-president Venkaiah Naidu in Lucknow on Saturday, has created a fresh controversy.

In his book Ankaha Lucknow, Mr Tandon has claimed that the famous “Teele Wali Masjid” that belongs to the Sunni sect, was actually built over “Laxman Teela” (named after Laxman, brother of Lord Ram) by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.

“I am not here to create any controversy but it is a fact that historians have only focussed on Nawabs, their wives, their lifestyles, their food while talking of Lucknow. Has anyone spoken about how many buildings of the Vedic era, Kushan dynasty, Maurya dynasty were destroyed? Has anyone written about the 1,000 types of sweets made in Avadh, 20 types of ‘rabri’, ‘malai’ and ‘laddoo’? No one goes beyond kebabs and biryani,” he said.

Talking about his claim on Teele Wali Masjid, Mr Tandon said that there was a “Shesh Gufa” on the mound on which the mosque stood and this was proof of Laxman’s link.

“Hindus believe that Laxman was an incarnation of Shesh Naag, the serpent king who guards Lord Vishnu. Lord Ram is said to be an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The Shesh Gufa is, therefore, believed to be an abode of Laxman,” he said.

He further explained that the Shesh Gufa was demolished during the Allauddin Khilji’s dynasty and later, Aurangzeb built the mosque over it.

Maulana Fazle Mannan, the imam of Teele Wali Masjid, meanwhile, claimed that the BJP leader “was guided more by politics than history and with an eye on the 2019 Lok Sabha elections”.

The cleric said that he had documents to demolish the claims made in the book though it was a fact that the mosque was built during the tenure of Aurangzeb.

UP minister Mohsin Raza said that Mr Tandon was a veteran leader and his claim should be taken seriously. “Mr Tandon has extensive knowledge about Lucknow and he is certainly not the kind who would make a false claim and his popularity cuts across the Hindu-Muslim divide”, he said.

Archaeologist D P Tiwari said that if excavation is carried out at the site, thetruth will be there for all to see.

“In Uttar Kand ‘of Ramayana, there is a reference to  Laxman having crossed the Gomti River to come to the Teela (which means a mound). The Teele wali Masjid is also built on a mound and the Gomti flows next to it”, he pointed out.