Lucknow's iconic Bara Imambara bans entry for girls in shorts

Girls wearing shorts and without headscarf would not be allowed entry into the iconic Bara Imambara of Lucknow.

The decision was taken by the Hussainabad Trust, which looked after the building, after a video showing a girl dancing inside the premises went viral on social networking sites a few days back.

Several Shia clerics had sharply criticised the incident and demanded strict rules for the tourists, who visited the Bara Imambara, which was used by the Shia Muslims to hold mourning congregations during Muharram.

"It is a serious matter...a probe should be conducted and strict action should be taken against the girl," said senior Shia cleric Saif Abbas.

"Imambara is not merely a tourist place....it is a religious place also...such activities cannot be allowed inside its premises," said an office bearer of the Trust here on Saturday.

The Trust deployed volunteers in the Bara Imambara to distribute headscarf among the women visitors. "We are not allowing girls in shorts or in mini skirts," the office bearer said.

The building was built in 1784 by the fourth Nawab of Avadh Asaf-ud-Daula as a major famine relief project. Its central hall was considered to be the largest arched hall in the world without any kind of support from wooden, iron or stone beams.

It is also known as 'Bhulbhulaiya' (labyrinth). The term became popular as it was very difficult for the visitors to navigate without a guide.

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