Redevelopment of the historic Khilafat House in Byculla has sparked a fresh controversy surrounding an old unidentified grave on the premises. While the site is being transformed with plans for a new 17-storey building, the proposal to relocate the grave has now been abandoned by the Khilafat Committee.
The grave has been claimed by some as that of Amjadi Bano Begum, a freedom fighter and wife of Khilafat movement leader Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar. However, the committee says it has no documentary evidence confirming the identity of the person buried there.
Senior Urdu journalist Saeed Hameed had earlier raised concerns that the grave could be shifted as part of the redevelopment.
“Before Amjadi Begum’s death on March 28, 1947, she was seriously ill at Karol Bagh in Delhi. It is unlikely that she travelled to Mumbai in that fragile condition. In any case, we have sought fatwas from the Deobandi and Barelvi Ulerna on whether a grave can be shifted. We are not shifting the grave,” said Khilafat committee chairman Sarfraz Arzoo.
17-Storey Building Planned
The redevelopment scheme includes a 17-storey tower housing a 125-bed hospital, offices and educational facilities operated by the Khilafat Committee. The planned institutions include a BSc nursing institute, while a modern conference hall is also part of the project.
Trustee Rauf Pathan said the entire property would remain under the ownership of the Khilafat Committee trust.
“The entire building will be owned by the Khilafat committee trust. Our agreement with GHC Hospitals (which will run the hospital) is only to operate the hospital and share the revenue,” said trustee Rauf Pathan.
The redevelopment arrangement has also prompted questions about the property’s legal and institutional status.
Former Juma Masjid trustee Shoaib Khateeb questioned the trust’s agreement with a private hospital operator and claimed that Khilafat House was registered with the state Waqf Board.
Responding to the claim, Pathan said, “This is the collector’s land and the trust is registered with Charity Commission. We have paid the fees to the collector and secured NOC from Charity Commission. The waqf board has nothing to do with us,” said Pathan.
A Site With a Nationalist Legacy
Khilafat House holds historical significance in Mumbai’s pre-Independence political history. Associated with the Khilafat movement and Mahatma Gandhi’s non-cooperation campaign, the premises became an important centre for mobilising nationalist support. It also gained prominence as a venue associated with Eid-e-Milad processions.
Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar died in 1931 and was buried at Baitul Maqdas in Jerusalem. He had earlier attended the First Round Table Conference in London, where he famously told the British: “Give us freedom or a place for my grave here as I do not want to die in a slave country.”
As redevelopment progresses, the decision to retain the unidentified grave leaves the historic element of the property intact while the site takes on a new institutional and healthcare-oriented role.
Source: Times of India
