Illegal structures around Afzal Khan’s tomb demolished; BJP leaders laud Shinde-Fadnavis govt.’s ‘Hindutva’ ideals

Hindu Mahasangh demands demolition of tombs of Afzal Khan and Aurangzeb

The Satara district administration on Thursday demolished unauthorised structures erected on government land around the tomb of Afzal Khan, the 17 th century general of the Adil Shahi dynasty of the Bijapur kingdom.

The demolishing of the illegal structures around Afzal Khan’s tomb, sited near the historic Pratapgad fort (close to the hill station of Mahabaleshwar), commenced on Thursday morning amid heavy security deployment.

Leaders from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as well as some right-wing outfits hailed the move, calling the Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis government a true adherent of ‘Hindutva’ principles and one that had the courage to finally implement the Bombay High Court’s order authorising the demolition.

According to sources, section 144 of the CrPC was imposed around the fort area and internet services temporarily suspended during the anti-encroachment drive while a robust security shield of more than 1,000 policemen was deployed in order to preclude any untoward incident.

Afzal Khan, a formidable and dreaded adversary of the nascent Maratha kingdom, was killed by Chhatrapati Shivaji near Pratapgad Fort in November 1659. Shivaji’s daring exploit and the subsequent battle of Pratapgad (believed to have taken place on November 10) have since been widely celebrated in Marathi ballads and folklore and form a centrepiece in the career of the illustrious warrior king.    

The tombs of Khan and his bodyguard, an expert swordsman by the name of Sayyid Banda (who was slain by Shivaji’s lieutenant Jiva Mahala) lie near the fort.

“The government has acted as per the High Court and Supreme Court’s orders. The courts had ordered the demolition of illegal constructions. Accordingly, the district administration has started the work of rooting out the encroachments. The original grave [Afzal Khan’s tomb] has not been disturbed. We have not touched the main structures,” said Satara Guardian Minister Shambhuraj Desai.