Narasapuram MP K. Raghu Ramakrishna Raju has written a letter to Union Minister of Culture Prahlad Singh Patel requesting the constitution of a high-level committee for the protection of Buddhist heritage site Thotlakonda in Visakhapatnam.
He alleged that the proposed allotment of a land in survey number 314 (old) of Kapuluppada village near the ancient site for the construction of a VIP guest house posed a threat to the existence of the monument.
He said the entire land in the given survey number forms part of the ancient site and is indicated in the archaeological evidences of the Buddhist era dating back to the third century BC.
Legal provisions
The MP observed that such constructions were a violation of Article 49 of the Constitution, under which the States had the obligation to protect every monument or place or object of artistic and historic importance declared by or under a law made by Parliament to be of national importance.
Another fact was that Andhra Pradesh enacted in 1960 the AP Ancient and Historical Monuments, Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, under which the site had been notified through GO Number 627 dated May 2, 1978.
Further, the matter had come up in the High Court in writ petition number 173/2016 and the court directed that the State government should not allow any construction in the said survey number. There were also norms laid down by the Supreme Court, he said.
