HYDERABAD: Graves desecrated in search of treasure, construction taken up on historical property and often turned into a dumpyard — this is the condition of the two Qutub Shahi era tombs at Roshan-ud-dowla village of Balapur belonging to Sufi saints Bhale Shah and Bhole Shah. The tombs are located beyond the Rohingya camp in Balapur, and abuts the Roshan-ud-dowla mosque in the area. Designed in the Qutub Shahi style with huge domes, the tombs lie in a dilapidated condition.
Explaining the importance of the tombs, Osman Mohammed Khan, a waqf activist said, Bhale Shah and Bhole Shah were Sufi saints, but they belonged to the Qutub Shahi royal family.“Although the entire dynasty is laid down in the Qutub Shahi tombs complex in Golconda, the two saints chose not to be buried there. Instead, they decided to be close to their spiritual mentor, Baba Sharfuddin Soharwardi who lived at Balapur and whose dargah is at Pahadi Shareef,” said Khan, who is also the vice-president of Greater Hyderabad Congress committee.
On Monday, when Express visited the site, five men who were camped in a tin shed beside the tombs objected to photos being taken. A middle-aged man who declined from giving his name said that it was a patta land and asked the photographer to delete the pictures.
A while ago, the Balapur police station had issued a statement in the matter saying that it is a patta land Sy no 51, and that there was a civil suit filed between AP Waqf Board and Laxma Reddy in 2000. The court had ruled in favour of Reddy. Although petitioners in favour of Waqf Board had filed a revised petition, the same was dismissed by the High Court. “Laxma Reddy has sold the same to Mohammed Yousuf who has started construction,” said the police.
However, the conundrum lies in the fact that the property also finds a mention in the AP Gazette of 1989. In the gazette, the land is notified as a Waqf land and according to the law, once a land is notified as Waqf, it cannot be sold or stripped off the category.
Chairman of Telangana Waqf Board, Mohammed Saleem said, “The construction that you see are all by land grabbers. They have also levelled the graves and have dug a ten-feet pit over there. The encroachers have also very slyly procured a ‘not to interfere’ status from the High Court. We at the Waqf Board, are taking the matter very seriously and we will take action.”
Waqf activist asks Balapur citizens not to buy tomb land
Hyderabad: Slamming local politicians over their apparent inaction regarding the Qutub Shahi tombs at Balapur, a waqf activist urged residents of the area not to buy the land which is being sold as plots by its owners. Osman Mohammed Khan, a Waqf activist and a politician, said, “If the graves of those related to the Qutub Shahi kings are not safe, how will our property be safe? We elect politicians not just for maintaining roads and electricity, but also to ensure the safety of our land.” Khan added that a graveyard in Misrigund was also being encroached. He said, “I want to ask MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi to come to the site once and lay down that it is a Waqf land.” The MBT spokesperson blaming AIMIM said, “This Waqf property is worth at least Rs 200 crore. Land grabbers who reside close to the Falaknuma Palace are plotting and concerned departments are silent on the matter.”