Hyderabad, August 25: Undisturbed by the real estate boom, a nondescript graveyard near the Himayatsagar still stands testimony to a chapter in the history of Hyderabad that is steeped in mystery – the founding of Asaf Jahi dynasty.
The founder of the dynasty, Mir Qamaruddin Ali Khan, who was also known as Chin Qilich Khan II, was only 16 years and had no idea of what was in store for him in the Deccan when the sultanate of Golconda fell to the army of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.
The year was 1687. Emperor Aurangzeb had decided to conquer Golconda, like Bijapur, in the Deccan. His previous attack on Golconda as a prince and commander of emperor Shah Jahan had resulted in the agreement under which Abdullah Qutub Shah had accepted the supremacy of the Mughals. But with the ascendance of Abul Hasan Tanashah on the throne of Golconda, that accord was in tatters. What added fuel to the fire was Tanashah’s flirtations with the Maratha strongman Shivaji.
When Aurangzeb began moving his forces towards Golconda he took with him Qilich Khan, a general of Turkic origin with proven military record.
In the beginning, the siege of Golconda failed to break the spirits of the Deccanis. The nine-month long siege was marked with repeated raids on the fort, the citadel of military power of Tanasha.
During one such assault the emperor made Qilich Khan in-charge of a military contingent. As the contingent carried out the raid, a canon ball fired from the fort hit Qilich Khan. He was seriously injured and his arm was severed from his body. Vaids and hakims worked on his body at the orders of the emperor who had rushed to the camp where he was being treated. Though Qilich Khan showed no signs of pain, he breathed his last, not far from the fort that later fell to the Mughals.
With a heavy heart Aurangzeb buried his close companion in the camp. He did not know that the sacrifice of Qilich Khan and his burial near the Himayatsagar would pave the way for his grandson to choose Deccan to begin his dynastic rule.
It took grandson Mir Qamaruddin Ali Khan or Chin Qilich Khan II another 60 years to travel to Deccan with the intention of establishing his rule there. By now he had received the titles of Nizamul Mulk as well as Asaf Jah. That is how he came to be known as Nizam, the first, as well as Asaf Jah, the first.
The real estate boom in Hyderabad has not disturbed the serene surroundings of the Qilich Khan cemetery. The maqberah or grave of Qilich Khan is placed within a chowkhandi (enclosure). Though the chowkhandi looks ancient, the grave appears to be a more recent reconstruction. The seventh Nizam. Mir Osman Ali Khan, had a tombstone carrying inscription in Persian placed at the grave.
“We are the mutawallis of this Dargah. We have carried out repairs and whitewashing of the entire place recently,” Mirza Abdul Kareem Baig, who lives a short distance from the grave, claimed.
According to sources, the Nizam’s Religious Trust is the custodian of the cemetery. The place is in ruins and attempts have been made of late by various groups to grab the land and destroy the structure. If the Trust does not take action soon, the key history to the Asaf Jahi dynasty will be lost forever.
–Agencies