HYDERABAD: As one steps into the main hall of the Gurdwara Sahib at Ameerpet, a wave of serenity takes over. The soft echo of ‘Satnam Waheguru’ resonates through the air, drawing the believers closer to the elevated platform where the Guru Granth Sahib rests under a beautiful canopy, adorned in rich fabrics and vibrant colours. A woman sifts through the revered pages, singing aarti softly. The ‘Shastra’ (weapons) kept in front remind the visitors of the idea of the Akal Takht, which inspires followers to be both saints and soldiers. Devotees, sitting cross-legged on the carpeted marble floor, with closed eyes, are found in deep meditation.
Sajjan Singh, a heritage conservationist and member of SGPC Amritsar, talks to us about how Sikhs came to Hyderabad. “The Sikh force came to Hyderabad on the invitation of the Nizam of Hyderabad in the 1830s, when Maharaja Chandulal, a follower and devotee of Guru Nanak, was the Prime Minister. In 1805, he got Dera Baba Nanak Gurdwara constructed in Kartarpur, using his own funds. When he joined Hyderabad as the Prime Minister, there were many different cantonments already settled in the area. The Rohilas, Arabs and others were collecting revenue but it was not being remitted to the treasury. Prime Minister Chandulal advised the Nizam to bring in the Sikh force from Punjab to resolve the issue,” Singh said.
Following his advice, the Nizam sent one of the most precious things to Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s palace as a present — a canopy embedded with gold and diamonds and embroidered with golden threads. The Maharaja, impressed, said he was not worthy of sitting under such a beautiful thing and it was submitted to the treasury of Harmandar Sahib. Fulfilling the Nizam’s request, Maharaja then sent around 1,406 soldiers from Punjab to Hyderabad to do services to the Nizam which included collection of revenue and its remission to the treasury. He also said that the salaries would be paid by the Lahore Darbar.
“Nanded too, was under Nizam’s dominions. The Maharaja also asked the Nizam to help build a Gurdwara there. The Nizam then gave a jagir of 21 villages to gurdwara Nanded and the revenue from these villages went to the gurdwara,” Singh said.
This led to the establishment of Hyderabad’s relations with the Sikhs. The Sikhs came to Hyderabad in different blocks. In 1832, the Sikh force were stationed here. The area beside Mir Alam tank, which was being newly developed at that time, thanks to the excessive booty that was collected from Tipu Sultan after he lost the war with the British, came to be established as Sikh Cantonment. It is presently in Attapur. Then, gradually, the Sikhs were dispersed to the different districts of the Nizam’s dominion. In 1832, a gurdwara was also constructed there.
The Ameerpet gurdwara was built in the late 1940s when one of the commanders of the Sikh force was stationed in Panjagutta. Khem Singh was the Risaldhar of this area. It was constructed with the funds of the local people here. “We have a langar hall, a function hall, a library, and a dispensary. The beauty of the Sikh religion is that all people are welcome here at any point of time,” Singh said.