According to the directives of the apex court, no demonstration or meeting can be held within 500 metres of the Taj Mahal.<\/p>\n
A few lawyers, however, tried to sneak in but were prevented by the police and security forces.<\/p>\n
Politicians from various parties, including the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, supported the demand for the high court bench in Agra, as recommended by the Jaswant Singh Commission.<\/p>\n
The steering committee of the demonstrators announced another march to the Parliament House in New Delhi would be held Dec 19.<\/p>\n
A memorandum to the president was presented to Agra’s District Magistrate Ajay Chauhan.<\/p>\n
A large number of tourists were inconvenienced and forced to walk long distances due to traffic restrictions.<\/p>\n
Since morning there was a massive deployment of security forces around the Taj Mahal, and the road from the Yamuna Expressway via Yamuna Kinara Road was heavily guarded.<\/p>\n
Conservationists have expressed concern over use of the Taj Mahal for protests.<\/p>\n
“The Taj Mahal should be spared. It is the crown of India and nobody should use it for partisan purposes,” said Shravan Kumar Singh, a conservationist.<\/p>\n
The issue of setting a high couirt bench has become a kind of football between Meerut and Agra. No political party wants to antagonise voters in one part, said senior lawyer Hemendra Chaturvedi.<\/p>\n
Given the size of the state, a bench of the high court in Agra was a very valid demand and has been hanging fire for more than three decades, Anil Sharma, a lawyer and president of the Agra Press Club, told IANS.<\/p>\n
The Jaswant Singh Commission set up by the central government in early 1980s had specifically recommended Agra for setting up a bench of the Allahabad High Court<\/p>\n
Uttar Pradesh already has its high court located at Allahabad, one of the oldest in the country, with a bench at Lucknow.<\/p>\n
Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh’s meeting with Law Minister Ashwini Kumar three days ago for a high court bench at Meerut had ignited the agitationn in Agra. However, Jayant Choudhary – Ajit Singh’s son and MP from Mathura – has supported Agra’s case.<\/p>\n
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