Khairtabad Mosque

Khairtabad Mosque 1626. Photo, by Lala Deen Dayal in 1885.

Khairtabad Mosque is in Khairatabad. Today Khairtabad is a well-known locality built around the mosque. The area had become a major business and IT hub of Hyderabad, India.[1]

History

Khairtabad Mosque was built by Khairunisa Begum in 1626 AD, also known as Ma Saheba, daughter of VI Sultan Muhammad Qutb Shah (1612–1626 AD). She built the mosque for her tutor Akhund Mulla Abul Malik.

There is an empty domed building adjacent to the mosque. The reason for its being devoid of any grave is that it was built by Akhund for self burial; as he died during his pilgrimage to Haj in Mecca, the dome remains vacant.[2]

Khairunisa Begum asked his son-in-law Hazrat Hussain Shah Wali to construct a palace, a mosque and a tank for the princess. The tank later became famous as Hussain Sagar, built in the northern boundary of Khairtabad.

Architecture

Khairatabad Mosque was designed and constructed by Hussain Shah Wali. The mosque has a three-arch opening in front. The slender minarets of the mosque have lot of decorative work and the Jali (net) work is worth seeing. The architecture of the mosque presents perfect harmony from bottom to top. The chief praying hall is on a raised platform.[3]

INTACH AP, India had declared it as a heritage site.[4]

Negligence

An article in The Hindu, "Crying for Attention," cited plant growth invading local mosques. "It doesn't require a connoisseur to see the rot that has set in the Qutb Shahi Khairtabad Mosque and Khairati Begum's tomb in Khairatabad," both protected architectural monuments. "The lime plaster and stuccowork can be seen peeling off at many places. There are ... fissures in the structure with vegetation growing from the minarets. The vegetal growth is particularly heavy at the rear of the mosque."[5][6]

Restoration

The Department of Archaeology and Museums has decided to take up repair work in the mosque and earmarked a sum of Rs. 25 lakhs under the plan budget. "The work has been awarded and it will commence soon," said J. Kedeshwari, director, Archaeology and Museums.

For the first time the department plans to take up conservation and restoration of the Premavati mosque and the Hakimpet Sarai at a cost of Rs. 5 crores. It's been delayed by a lack of budgetary and technical support, say officials.[7]

Reference List

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Khairtabad Mosque.
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  5. ↑ "Crying for Attention," The Hindu, 30 October 2006
  6. ↑ "How protected is our heritage?". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  7. ↑ "Khairatabad mosque in state of neglect". The Hindu (Chennai, India). 30 October 2006.

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