one of the 'Seven Wonders of the World' +

NEW DELHI: A day after it became known that the Uttar Pradesh government hasn't put the Taj Mahal on a list of tourism projects, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi took aim at state chief minister Adityanath , calling him the "useless ruler of a town plunging into darkness".The opposition was aghast at the fact thatwas omitted from the list and called the Adityanath government communal. That's because not long ago Adityanath said in an address in Bihar that the "Taj Mahal...did not reflect Indian culture".Rahul commented sarcastically about the omission, in a tweet today:"The sun doesn't lose any of its brightness if you fail to point a candle at it. It is this kind of rule that (poet) Bhartendu (Harishchandra) was referring to when he coined the phrase 'andher nagri, choupat raja' (useless ruler of a town plunging into darkness)"Controversy erupted after the booklet released last weekend mentioned Naimisharanya, Allahabad, Chitrakoot and a host of other places, but not Agra or the Taj Mahal.Aside from the Congress vice president, leaders of other Opposition parties too criticised the omission of the Taj Mahal."I believe that for people all over the world, one of the major spots for tourists is the Taj Mahal. It also supports the economy of UP. This is truly made in India. Therefore, people will only laugh at him and his complete ignorance of history and importance of preserving the beauty of Taj Mahal," said the CPM's Brinda Karat.The Samajwadi Party (SP), which was in power in UP before the Adityanath government, said the new administration wants to give the state a communal identity."Across the world, India is known for the Taj Mahal. But the BJP government in UP wants to give the state a new identity... The UP government now seems determined to give the state an identity that suits the communal forces," said SP member Naresh Agrawal.Following the Opposition's denouncements, UP's tourism ministry issued a press release stating that the booklet in question wasn't meant to be a publication of the state's tourist attractions. The ministry said the booklet was meant to highlight the UP government's ongoing and future plans in the tourism sector and was published on the completion of six months of the Yogi government.Three months ago, Adityanath said at a rally in Darbhanga in Bihar that "foreign dignitaries visiting the country used to be gifted replicas of Taj Mahal, which did not reflect Indian culture".