after
the Red Fort is the most sought after spot by tourists who come to
Delhi.It is 72.5 metres high and one has to climb 379 steps to get to
the top.The diameter of the base is 14.3 metres while the top floor
measures 2.7 metres in diameter.After an accident some years ago in
which many schoolchildren died, no one is permitted to go inside the
minar.The minar was said to have been built to celebrate the victory of
Mohammed Ghori, the invader from Afghanistan, over the Rajputs in 1192
and it was partly completed by his viceroy, Qutabuddin Aibak ( 1192
-98), the first sultan of the Slave dynasty.After his death, the rest
was completed by Iltutmish, another Muslim King.It stands just outside
the central courtyard of Quwwatul Masjid and it was meant to function as
a minar so that the muezzin could call the faithful to prayer and also
as a symbol of the military might of the Turko-Afghan slave
dynasty.Lightning knocked off the uppermost floor in 1368, it was left
to Firozshah Tughlak to restore and also add two floors, which
introduced white marble in the otherwise red and buff sandstone
exterior. In the early 19th century, an earthquake destroyed the
crowning cupola which was replaced by an English engineer, Major Smith.
But it looked so out of place that the then Governor-General,Lord
Hardinge , ordered its removal. Today it stands on the lawns close to
the minar.