LEGAL ISSUES IN OWNERSHIP AND PRESERVATION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE: A CASE STUDY ON TAJ MAHAL
AUTHOR – GOWTHAM BK, STUDENT AT ST. JOSEPH’S COLLEGE OF LAW
BEST CITATION – GOWTHAM BK, LEGAL ISSUES IN OWNERSHIP AND PRESERVATION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE: A CASE STUDY ON TAJ MAHAL, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (10) OF 2026, PG. 13-18, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.
ABSTRACT
The Taj Mahal is one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites that is legally protected under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 (AMASR Act), and is under the state custodianship. But the ownership of the Taj Mahal has been in conflict between the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the Uttar Pradesh Waqf Board, and the issue was contested in the courts. The UP Waqf Board claims that the monument is a waqf property (Islamic religious endowment), but the courts have strongly emphasized and held that a monument of national importance, without having provided clear and credible evidence, cannot be handed over to any religious or private entity. This is to stress that the Taj Mahal belongs to the nation and not to any private or religious entity.
Along with the ownership issues, preservation issues, including air pollution, industrial emissions, and climate impacts, surrounding Taj Mahal led to the landmark public interest case of MC Mehta vs UOI (Taj Trapezium case), which addressed industrial pollution affecting the monument, leading to strict regulatory controls around the monument and the creation of the Taj Mahal Trapezium zone (TTZ).
This Research paper analyzes the legal conflicts surrounding ownership and preservation of cultural heritage in India using the Taj Mahal as a case study. This synopsis hypothesizes that there is a thin evolving line between religious property claims and the state’s heritage preservation of the Taj Mahal under property and constitutional law. It formulates research questions on ownership disputes, statutory protection, and judicial-environmental interventions. The research adopts a doctrinal and qualitative methodology, with its sources primarily from articles and journals available online.
Keywords – Taj Mahal, Waqf Board, TTZ, AMASR Act, ASI, NMA.