Tomb Of ‘King-maker’ Develops Cracks, Waits For Promised Repairs

Hyderabad: Tucked away from the hustle and bustle of the Old City and at a safe distance from the heavy traffic is one of the tallest domes in the country.

A place of worship and an inalienable part of the city’s

heritage

, the

Dargah Hazrat Shah Raju Qattal Hussaini

sits on a sprawling eight acre lush green land in the heart of Misrigunj.

Barely a 10-minute drive from the Charminar, it is the final resting place of Hazrat Syed Shah Yusuf Hussaini, now popularly known as Hazrat Shah Raju Qattal, a descendant of another Sufi — Khwaja Banda Nawaz Gesudaraz from Gulbarga, Karnataka.

Those who revere the saint refer to him as ‘king-maker’. Legend has it that Hazrat Shah Raju Qattal prophesised that Abul Hasan Qutb Shah, also known as Tana Shah, the last Qutb Shahi sultan, would become king.

“Tana Shah was a disciple of the saint. He came to him as a young boy and was his mureed (disciple) at the khankhah (hospice) for 14 years. It was the sultan who constructed this tomb for his teacher,” says Syed Nadeemullah Hussaini, who is the mutawalli and sajjada nashin of the dargah.

The tomb complex stands 165 feet tall and is buttressed by 110 stone pillars. Their uniqueness lies in the fact that none of them have a joint. Each pillar, which is 25 feet in height, is one massive single unit.

A steady stream of the devout, some with entire families in tow, come to the dargah to pay respects and to pray. Some sit at the langar cooking food and others at one of the several slender, granite pillars, shielding themselves from the monsoon rains.

While the inner sanctum is clean and well lit, the outer structure is a cause for concern. The bulbous tomb has developed cracks. Large chunks of lime mortar plaster have given way, laying bare the stone masonry. The dome is darkened by soot and vegetation is growing at a few places.

It was in last October that the minorities welfare department had sanctioned Rs 50 lakh as grant-in-aid for conservation of the tomb and directed the chief executive officer of the Telangana State Waqf Board to release funds. It took around 10 months for the board to release Rs 10 lakh, the first instalment, so that work can begin.

“There can be a marked improvement in the outer structure now as officials from the department of archaeology and their consultants came here around a fortnight ago. They took measurements and are soon going to begin conservation work,” Hussaini said.

GRAPHIC

Unique architecture of the dargah

165-feet-tall tomb has 110 stone pillars

Each pillar is 25 feet high and is one single unit without any joints

The stuff of legends...

Hazrat Syed Shah Yusuf Hussaini, popularly known as Hazrat Shah Raju Qattal, was a descendant of another Sufi, Khwaja Banda Nawaz Gesudaraz from Gulbarga

He is referred to as ‘king-maker’ as he prophesised that Abul Hasan Qutb Shah (Tana Shah) would become king

It was Tana Shah who constructed the tomb for his teacher

Present scenario

Cracks in bulbous tomb

Large chunks of lime mortar plaster have fallen off

Dome is darkened by soot

Vegetation is growing from cracks at a few places