Proposed Mausoleum of Malang Majnu Shah at Makanpur
Dr.Mazhar
Naqvi
Malang
Majnu Shah, a great devotee of Ahle-Bait-e-Athaar and first hero of India’s
freedom movement, is all set to have a beautiful mausoleum over his grave –almost
230 years of his martyrdom. The move has been initiated by the President
of Madariya Sufi Foundation, Mr. Sameer Madarvi. In fact, the foundation was
willing to undertake construction work on India’s Independence Day (August 15,
2017) but deferred the plan till the end of Ayam-E-Aza( Period of mourning for
martyrs of Karbala). Mr. Madarvi revealed that the soul of Majnu Shah would never
relish any construction work over his grave during the month of Muharram and Safar
, for he was a great devotee of Panjatan and used to himself mourn the martyrdom
of Imam Hussain and his companions.
He
drew inspiration from the words of Imam Hussain that death is better than a
disgraceful life. Hence, when East India Company tried to intervene in the
religious affairs of Indians, Majnu Shah was the first to raise voice against
the British after their victory at Plassey in 1757.Majnu Shah also managed to
garner support of Hindus like Bhawani Pathak and Devi Chaudhrani .The trio
fought for more than 25 years in Bengal ,Bihar, Assam and Odisha provinces. Their
combined forces raided scores of British settlements, including government
offices and treasuries and managed to decamp booty worth thousands of
rupees.They did not spare the rich landlords and distributed the money looted
from them among the destitute.
After
scoring several victories over the British, Majnu Shah however suffered a
massive defeat and bullet injuries at Mehsangarh. He repaired to Dargah of his
spiritual master Hazrat Zinda Shah Madar in Makanpur in Kanpur district of
Indian province of Uttar Pradesh. He reportedly breathed his last on January 26,1788/89
, according to British sources. Since then, his grave and Kothri (small room)
have been in utter neglect. While Majnu Shah is national hero in Bangladesh,
Indian government has never bothered to recall his contribution to freedom
movement.
Now
the foundation has decided to erect a mausoleum in his sacred memory from own
efforts as a mark of tribute to this unsung hero of freedom struggle. He
deserves his due as he is perhaps the first Indian leader who exhibited the British
the might of Hindu-Muslim unity. He led a selfless life and kept national
interest supreme. Majnu Shah was a wandering mystic (Malang) and belonged to
Madariya Sufi order. His original named was Abu Talib and he hailed from Mewat
region of modern Indian state of Haryana. It is worth mentioning here that diuciples
of Shah Madar hold Panjatan in very high esteem Ahle and their most famous
slogan is “ Ek Naara Panjatan- Ya Ali Ya Ali.(References available on
request.Photo Courtesy Mr.Sameer Madarvi)
Grave of Majnu Shah Wrapped with Tricolor on Independence day in Makanpur
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