(file photo)
Highlights
Tomb of Shah Jahan’s daughter-in-law Bilkis Begum. Tomb of Nadir Shah and Bibi ki Masjid. Now these heritages will be under the protection of ASI.
Naiduniya Representative, Burhanpur. Three historical heritages built during the Mughal and Farukhi rule in Burhanpur city of Madhya Pradesh are no longer the property of the Waqf Board. These include the tomb of Bilkis Begum, daughter-in-law of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan and Begum Mumtaz, the tomb of Nadir Shah and Bibi Ki Masjid.
Recently, the main bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court did not consider the claim of Waqf Board on these three historical buildings as justified and considered the protection of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) as per the rules. After the decision of the High Court, now ASI’s protection will remain on all the three historical buildings of Burhanpur.
Melon dome
Bilkis Begum’s Tomb Bilkis Begum alias Begum Shuja was the daughter-in-law of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan and Begum Mumtaz and wife of Shah Shuja. Bilkis Begum was born in Ajmer and died in Burhanpur in 1632 AD. After her death, this tomb was built on the Samadhi near Azad Nagar between Tapti and Utavali river in her memory. The design of this tomb is in the shape of a melon, which is an unmatched example of Iranian architecture, that is why it is also called Kharbuja Gumbad. The tomb built in about 600 square feet has wonderful colorful paintings and carvings inside.
Tomb of Nadir Shah
Near Azad Nagar is the tomb of Farukhi ruler Nadir Shah. Nadir and other members of his family were buried in it. This tomb was built in the 15th century. Nadir was an Iranian ruler. He invaded and captured a large area of India. After the death of Nadir Shah, he and other members of his family were buried in Burhanpur. This tomb is also now under the protection of the Archaeological Department and has been declared a national monument.
Bibi Ki Masjid
Bibi Ki Masjid is the first Jama Masjid of Burhanpur. It was built by Begum Rukaiya, wife of Emperor Adil Shah Farooqi, during the reign of Farooq. Bibi Ki Masjid is a replica of the Jama Masjid of Ahmedabad. Stones brought from the mines of Asirgarh were used in the construction of the mosque. Artisans were brought from Gujarat for the construction. The influence of Gujarat’s architecture is visible. This mosque, which is one of the grand buildings of its time, was also a center of education in Arabic and Persian languages during the reign of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.