The Supreme Court on Wednesday (May 9) asked the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) about the status of the directions given by it on the previous hearing and whether it was heeded or not.

The bench headed by Justice Madan B Lokur asked ASI: “According to you, Taj Mahal is fine.”

To which the ASI replied: “We are doing our best. The photos which were presented before the court were before the cleaning of the Taj and those were of the floors.”

Justice Lokur objected it by saying: “You provide the visitors, shoes to be put up, then how the colours of the floors has been changed. That means you provide dirty shoes to the visitors. You say that all is well. How can you say that? Is this the stand of ASI on Taj?”

The bench was hearing the petition allaying fears on the cutting of trees in the Taj Trapezium Zone.

The matter was listed for next hearing to July.

In the previous hearing, the bench had asked the Centre whether Taj was changing its colour after the petitioner had showed the pictures of Taj having changed its colour.

The bench while expressing displeasure had directed the Centre to take the help of Indian experts or from abroad to see the magnitude of damage and if it can be corrected.

—India Legal Bureau