Ellora, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, contains some of the most exquisitely carved monuments that embody the layered and pluralistic history of ancient India. The thirty-four caves open to the public have been nearly equally divided between the three major religions of ancient India i.e. Buddhism, Brahminism and Jainism. According to UNESCO, “The rock-cut activity was carried out in three phases from the 6th century to the 12th century. The earliest caves (caves 1–12), excavated between the 5th and 8th centuries, reflect the Mahayana philosophy of Buddhism once prevalent in this region. The Brahmanical group of caves (caves 13–29), including the renowned Kailasa temple (cave 16), was excavated between the 7th and 10th centuries. The last phase, between the 9th and 12th centuries, saw the excavation of a group of caves (caves 30–34) reflecting Jaina philosophy”.

Security concerns in the historic Ellora caves

Being a UNESCO site, Ellora draws global tourists who often compare it with Petra of Jordan or with the Parthenon in Athens. The site comprises various elements like Buddhist monasteries, statues of Buddha and Jain gods, and a plethora of deities worshipped by Hindus. The monolithic Kailash temple (Cave 16) attributed to the Rastrakutas (7th AD-11th AD), is a major attraction, particularly for Hindu pilgrims.

In June, a group of Hindi-speaking pilgrims managed to enter the Ellora complex with musical instruments and performed devotional songs at the base of the Kailash temple, bringing the security and management of the UNESCO site under scrutiny. The local ASI office maintains that these pilgrims were unaware of the rule that any form of worship is prohibited at the site, and they were able to hold their devotional singing programme as the guards were busy during the morning hours with other matters.

Though this group of pilgrims dispersed immediately after the guards intervened, the incident shows the security concerns posed by the unchecked entry of visitors at Ellora. Loud music and noisy groups interfere with several guide tours conducted at the site for foreign and domestic visitors. There is also the risk of wanton defacing of the site, which is unfortunately commonplace in India.

"ASI's funds are inadequate to properly manage and maintain the more than 3,500 protected sites under its supervision. Only the important sites are generally better maintained and certainly the Kailash temple is one such monument. This incident of people entering with Dholak etc should not have happened. However, it also points to a larger concern which is how we as a society need to learn how to respect and conserve our precious heritage", Dr Radhika Tipre, author of 'Verul Lenyatil Shilp Vaibhav', a work based on the various sculptures in Ellora's caves, told Hindustan Times.

To address security concerns, the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Rural police recommended security measures in March this year, which included door frame metal detectors, baggage scanners and CCTVs. However, the local ASI office has highlighted the lack of funds to implement the measures. “Another proposal to enlist the services of the Central Industrial Security Force for Ellora has been gathering dust since 2019”, said Saket Kulkarni, a Marathi linguist and heritage conservationist based in Sambhajinagar.

Another aspect is the political ramification: if Hindus have been allowed to get away with singing songs and worship, similar demands could be made by Buddhist and Jain pilgrims. With just months to go before the Maharashtra assembly polls, the issue of access to religious sites could be turned into a political controversy to polarise voters.

Aurangabad’s rich architectural history

The Aurangabad region is rich in monuments with a distinct Islamic history beginning at least from the reign of Alauddin Khalji (1296-1316), followed by that of Malik Ambar (1548-1626) and then the Mughals (1526-1857), and finally the Hyderabad Nizams (1726-1948). Aurangzeb, first as governor of Deccan and then as the Emperor, added to the architectural repertoire when he shifted his capital briefly to Aurangabad to conduct military campaigns in the region. His reign saw the construction of the iconic Bibi ka Maqbara, where his beloved wife’s grave lies in a tomb that is also known as Deccan’s Taj.

Another site that contains multiple layers of history is Daulatabad, which was known as Deogiri (Hill of gods) till it was renamed by Mohammad bin Tughluq in 1327. From the 6th century till the first decade of the 14th century, Deogiri was an important town as it fell on important trade routes towards the south and the west. Before the conquest by the Delhi Sultanate, it was under the control of Yadavas who were the first to build a fort there in 1187.

Unsurprisingly, Daulatabad Fort too is a site of a confluence of cultures but risks being turned into one of conflict over religion. It contains Jain relics, probably belonging to an erstwhile Jain structure, a Hindu temple of Lord Ganesh, and the resting place of Janardhan Swamy (1504 -1575), besides mosques and the Chand minar (a replica of Delhi’s Qutub minar).

Interestingly, Janardhan Swamy, a reformist saint and spiritual teacher of 16th-century saint Eknath, was also the commander of the fort during the rule of Ahmadnagar Nizams (1490-1636).

At all three non-Islamic sites worship has been happening since Independence in addition to at a Bharat Mata (Mother India) statue which was installed during the turmoil following the violent struggle with Hyderabad’s Nizam’s forces in the wake of its refusal to accede to the union of India.

In the last few years, sections within various communities have raised demands to restore worship in ASI-protected monuments including those in the Aurangabad region.

In June this year, the Aurangabad ASI office passed orders banning worship at all three places and evicted their hereditary priests citing the non-living nature of the fort and sections that prohibit worship at such sites under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958.

This has expectedly led to the heating up of the local political pot with both the BJP and the two factions of the Shive Sena demanding that worshipped be restored immediately.

This competitive seeking of access to protected sites can only spell trouble and has the ASI and local administration in a Catch-22 situation. “There is a thin line between living and non-living monuments. If worship has been happening since 1948 at the Bharat Mata temple and for a much longer time at the other two sites inside the fort then they should be allowed to continue. The ASI would do well to pay more attention to fixing the problems at Ellora instead of taking actions that create resentment among communities and can have serious ramifications in the future”, Kulkarni told Hindustan Times.

HistoriCity is a column by author Valay Singh that narrates the story of a city that is in the news, by going back to its documented history, mythology and archaeological digs. The views expressed are personal