Ashoorkhana’s restoration faces mysterious delays

Hyderabad: Badshahi Ashoorkhana, a historic structure from the Qutub Shahi period, has been facing political neglect as promises made for restoration work have yet to be fulfilled.

In May 2023, an agreement was reached between HMDA, the Department of Heritage and Agha Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC) for the restoration of Badshahi Ashoorkhana, Saidanima Tomb and Shaikpet Sarai. Even a year later, only one of them — Saidanima tomb — has been restored.

In April 2024, there were reports that the restoration of the Ashoorkhana drum house would soon be completed and that work on the main building would be accelerated. However, no progress has been made since then.

According to sources, the work has been halted, reportedly due to lack of funds. Ratish Nanda, CEO of AKTC, admitted that the work has not started yet. When asked about the reason for the delay, he said, “The answer lies with HMDA and the Department of Heritage, why it has not started yet.”

Mir Abbas Ali Musavi, the trustee (Mutavalli) of the ashoorkhana, said he was not aware of the restoration plans. “We have been waiting for the restoration for a long time. Ever since the MoU was signed, we have seen AKTC people evaluating the ashoorkhana structures. There was talk of restoring Naqar Khana, the drum house and also the roof of the main building. They wanted to reduce the weight of the roof so that the load-bearing walls would bear less load. They also wanted to add iron pillars to support the roof. However, no official plans have been submitted to us,” he said.

The ashoorkhana was built by Mohammad Quli Qutub Shah in 1594, three years after the construction of Charminar. It was decorated with coloured mosaic tiles in 1611. It was restored once in 1764 by Nizam Ali Khan, the second Nizam of Hyderabad.

The ashoorkhana complex, which covers 43,115 square metres, was completely encroached upon until the hereditary trustees fought legal battles to get it back. “In 2007, we filed a petition in the court after which the eviction was completed in 2012. More recently, the front of Chabutra and the waiting rooms were cleared of encroachments. The ashoorkhana has been under the watchful eye of both the land mafia and politicians. There has been a lot of political interference to delay its restoration. We expect the same from the present government,” Abbas Ali said.

AKTC recently completed its 10-year restoration of Qutub Shahi Heritage Park and Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy himself attended the grand opening, sending out a message that the government is interested in protecting heritage structures. Officials from the HMDA and the heritage ministry declined to comment.