Kidwai Nagar's Chief Justice

Tue, Jul 15 12:25 AM

Close to the market in Kidwai Nagar lie the remains of a grand three-tiered mausoleum. This is the tomb of Darya Khan Lohani - Mir Adil (Chief Justice) during Bahlol Lodi's reign and a minister during Sikandar Lodi's rule.

Son of a nobleman called Mubarak Khan Lohani, Darya Khan died when Ibrahim Lodi was the emperor and was buried in this grand and spectacularly unusual mausoleum. Unlike any other tomb in Delhi, either of the Lodi period or before or after, this is a majestic three-storeyed affair.

Scarred by the New Delhi Municipal Council's earlier attempt at 'beautifying'' its surrounding, this ancient legacy already stands in the midst of an ugly blue fountain. For years now, its sole moment under the spotlight has been when the effigies of Ravan, his son Meghnad and brother Kumbhakaran are erected close beside it during the Dusshera festivities.

For years no one paid any heed to the damage, the noise and air pollution that must have been damaging this already fragile monument, till the INTACH moved the High Court to put an end to the onslaught in 2005. Blatantly violating the Ancient Monuments and Remains Act that prohibits lighting of a fire close to a protected monument to prevent any damage to the structure, the police, the Ram Lila organisers as well as the area MLA insisted on burning Ravana within the tomb enclosure.

Newspaper reports carried the Ram Lila organisers and local worthies saying, "The effigies were not on the monument, just close to it. Only Ravana was near the monument.

" While ASI officials have grown weary having to deal with this problem each year, the issue is not only about the burning of Ravana in a protected monument, but a reflection of how lightly history is taken. With the law enforcers as well the law framers abandoning their duty, it is unfortunately monuments like the tomb of Darya Khan Lohani that are the sufferers.

Dependent on the police to take action for their complaints, the ASI is helpless and unable to protect their territory if the law enforcers decide to turn a deaf ear. After the Ram Lila and the hullabaloo temporarily over, the tomb of Darya Khan Lohani slinks back into oblivion, unvisited and unknown by those who live in the dense colonies clustered all around it.

Though bits and parts of the complex are missing, there is still enough here to indicate that this must have once been a beautiful and sombre monument - perfect for a stroll in the rain.

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