New Delhi: In a significant move, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday dedicated the spruced up Hazratbal shrine project to the people during his visit to Srinagar.
The key components of the Rs 45 crore project include a new entrance gateway of the shrine, development of the entire area including construction of boundary wall of the Shrine, illumination of Hazratbal shrines precinct, among others.
Situated on the left bank of the famous Dal Lake in Srinagar, Hazratbal is the most revered Islamic shrine in Kashmir and is also known by different names like Assar-e-Sharief, Dargah Sharif and Madinat-us-Sani. It houses the holy relic of Prophet Mohammad — Moi-e-Muqaddas.
A troubled past
According to Professor Upendra Kaul, the shrine was initially built by Inayat Begum, the daughter of Khwaja Nur-ud-Din Eshai, the custodian of the holy relic.
Legend has it that the relic, now kept at the Hazratbal Shrine, was first brought to Kashmir by Syed Abdullah Madani, who is believed to have been a descendant of the Prophet who left Medina for Bijapur, now called Vijayapura in Karnataka.
Following his death, his son Syed Hameed inherited the relic. As Mughals took over the region, Prof Kaul writes in Greater Kashmir, Hameed was stripped of all his family inheritances as well as the estates.
Unable to take care of the holy relic, he handed the relic to rich Kashmiri businessman Khwaja Nur-ud-Din-Eshai. When Aurangzeb came to know about this, he got the holy relic seized and sent it to the shrine of the Sufi mystic Mu’in al Din Chishti of Ajmer Dargah. Meanwhile Eshai was imprisoned so that he could not have any claim on the relic.
It is said that Aurangzeb had a dream in which Prophet Muhammad ordered him to immediately send the holy Moi-e-Muqaddas to Kashmir. He immediately ordered the release of Eshai and the holy relic be handed back to him.
But by that time, Eshai had died in the prison. So the relic along with the body was taken to Kashmir in 1700. Eshai’s daughter Inayat Begum became the custodian of the holy relic. Since then, her male descendants became the caretakers of the relic at the mosque.
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Missing relic in 1963
The morning of 27 December, 1963 sent shockwaves in Kashmir after it was found that the relic was missing from the shrine. There was immediate outpouring of emotions on the streets, with thousands protesting and raising slogans.
Such was the situation that then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru deputed central leaders and officers to help the state government with the situation.
Riots took place in far-off West Bengal where several people lost their lives. The situation eased off only after news came that the relic was returned after 10 days and that its authenticity has been verified by the caretakers.
In February 1964, then Home Minister Gulzarilal Nanda named three Kashmiris as having been arrested for the theft of the holy relic. The arrested were identified as Abdul Rahim Bandey, a custodian of the shrine; Abdul Rashid, a villager who was caught while running away after returning the relic to the shrine; and Kadir Butt, who was alleged to be linked to Pakistan.
Siege of 1993
In October that year, the shrine hit international news headlines and led to what many believe was capitulation of the Indian state.
Earlier that year, a group of militants had managed to enter the shrine and remain inside. In April, the army had surrounded the site and exchanged gunfire with the militants, but the soldiers were withdrawn suddenly by Lt-General D.D. Saklani (retd.), the then security adviser to the governor.
The hangover of Operation Bluestar was still there, and the government did not want a repeat of that.
On 15 October, the then Kashmir IGP A.K. Suri was informed by a member of the Muslim Auqaf Trust that the holed up militants had tampered with the locks of the strong-room in which the holy relic is kept.
Suri then called up Lt-General M.A. Zaki (retd.), then security adviser to the governor, ordered two BSF companies to surround the mosque and block all exit and entry points before informing the governor.
That decision of blocking the entry and exit points led to a standoff, with civilians inside the shrine taken as hostage by the militants. The Army moved in on instructions and cut off food, water and electricity supply to the shrine.
The siege continued for a fortnight as the government was against launching an operation.
During the course of negotiations, a decision was taken to provide food, water and restoration of the telephone line which was used by the militants for propaganda through interviews with the foreign media.
By the end of it, the government gave in. While the siege continued for 14 days till the security forces withdrew, tensions brewed on the streets of Kashmir with local residents protesting the presence of the Army at the shrine.
There were two incidents in which the BSF opened fire on protesters, leaving seven dead in Srinagar and another 37 in Bijbehara, a town north of Srinagar.
Encounter in 1996
In March 1996, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) militants managed to sneak into the shrine. Post negotiations, the holed up militants moved out of the shrine into a building just 50 yards away.
But on the fourth day of the group moving out, there was a fierce encounter with the security forces who shot down 22 militants. Two buildings in the vicinity of the shrine were completely destroyed in the exchange of gunfire.
The reason for the encounter was officially mentioned as to prevent the militants from again laying siege to the shrine. It was said that the militants were asked to lay down their arms and surrender even as they claimed that the deal was that they would be given a safe passage with their arms.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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