Amid row, Aurangzeb's tomb in Maharashtra closed for 5 days

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has closed Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb's tomb in Maharashtra state's Aurangabad for five days after a mosque committee in the area tried to lock the place, an official said today.

The action came a couple of days after radical Hindu outfit Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) spokesperson Gajanan Kale had in a tweet questioned the need for the monument's existence, our New Delhi correspondent reports.

A member of the mosque committee in Aurangabad's Khultabad area, where the tomb is located, tried to lock the ASI-protected monument. Subsequently, the ASI deployed additional security guards at the monument.

ASI's Aurangabad circle superintendent Milan Kumar Chauley said, "Earlier, the mosque committee tried to lock the place but we opened it. On May 18, we took a decision to shut the tomb for next five days."

"We will review the situation and then decide to open it or to keep it closed for another five days," the official said.

All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) lawmaker Akbaruddin Owaisi's visit to the tomb earlier this month was criticised by Maharashtra's ruling Shiv Sena, a former ally of the BJP, as well as Raj Thackeray-led MNS.