Hyderabad: People protested as the Qutb Shahi ashoorkhana at Golconda was sealed by the Nizam’s Wakf committee; even caretaker Syed Javed is not being allowed enter the premises. Mr Syed Ali Jaffery, a Shia community member at Golconda, said the ashoorkhana was locked without reason. “The building is old but it is not in a dilapidated condition. It was well maintained,” he said.
The caretaker would clean it every Thursday as prayers were offered in the evening and Friday afternoon. Residents also complained to the chief executive officer of the Wakf Board. In a letter, the residents alleged that the open land outside the ashoorkhana was going to be leased out to a cafeteria for visitors to the fort.
Mr Javed, the caretaker, said, “The building requires renovation but is not in such a condition that it will collapse. The Wakf Board is not spending money on restoring the building.” Devotees pooled money, got the building cleaned and white-washed and removed vegetation, he said. “The place where the alams are kept is open for devotees who come on Thursdays and Fridays. This week they were very angry that it was locked,” he said. A members of the Nizam’s Wakf committee said the building required repairs.
