A ministry committee sets to find truth about a Mughal tomb

New Delhi: A committee on 11 January will visit an extant tomb from 17th century, to decide if it belongs to author Dara Shikoh, the eldest of son of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.

India's Ministry of Culture set up the committee after Sanjeev Kumar Singh, engineer at Municipal Corporation of Delhi, linked the tomb to Dara Shikoh whom his brother Aurangzeb had murdered in 1659, for power.

The committee including R. S. Bisht, B. R. Mani, K. N. Dixit, Dr. K. K. Muhammad, Syed Jamal Hasan and B. M. Pandey, and engineer Sanjeev Kumar will also tag along.

Sources said members of the committee agreed to Sanjeev's claims, after they matched the estimates of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

After a meeting on Thursday, committee member BR Mani told IANS, "In today's meeting it is decided that in January the committee members will visit the site. Municipal Corporation of Delhi engineer Sanjeev Kumar Singh will also be called. Only then will a decision be taken on the tomb of Dara Shikoh. The report will go to the ministry after the committee's visit. Some members have visited the site earlier. "

"It has been decided that the committee members will visit the site in January again. Any decision on the tomb of Dara Shikoh will taken only after that. A report will be sent to the ministry after the committee's visit. Some other members had already visited the site earlier." BR Mani also added.

The Persian book Alamgirnama written by Mohammed Kazim, author of the official history in the era of Aurangzeb, details the killing and cremation of Dara Shikoh. According to the book, Dara's body was buried in the basement of Humayun's tomb, where Akbar's other sons Daniel and Murad were buried, he said.

" The grave of Dara Shikoh was found after studying the styles of the tombs of all times. The Alamgirnama book showed the way. I made this report on my own will and the report was praised by all. It is a pleasure to bring this into light," Singh said.

Dara Shikoh spent time dabbling more in Indian Upanishads and philosophy than seeking power. The scholar was known to have been liberal as well.

The tomb's discovery could have some political importance, given the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's fondness for Dara Shikoh as one different from the Mughal rulers, and as such is of interest to the present government.

IANS report with edits