Despite pleas, 300-year-old mosque battles neglect

CHARMINAR: Dilapidated walls and cracked ceiling is worrying devotees who flock to the historic Afzalgunj mosque.
Although multiple requests have been made to the authorities concerned, nothing has been done to undertake renovation works yet. The Masjid-e-Osman Shahi was built almost 300 years ago during the Qutb Shahi period, but with increasing encroachments and apathy, devotees say any further negligence by Telangana State Wakf Board (TSWB) will only pave way for land grabbers to take control of the mosque.

"It is a historic mosque being taken care of by so-called sympathizers. It exists in the heart of the city, but I do not hold out much hope because of the constant neglect by the authorities. One of the officials from TSWB had inspected the mosque and taken note of all the mosque issues. Unfortunately, no concrete steps have been initiated against the illegal occupancy around the mosque and no renovation work has been undertaken so far,'' said Mohammed Abdul Raheem, one of the devotees. Mohammed Anjum, another devotee, told TOI that the walls and the ceiling need to be attended to immediately. He further said that there has been no end to the encroachments and the TSWB has failed to stop land grabbers.

"The mosque land has nearly been encroached upon due to official apathy. The pathetic state of the historic structure needs to be taken seriously,'' said another devotee, Mohammed Anjum. However, TSWB chairman Mohammed Saleem said that nobody has approached the Board with a complaint. He, however, ensured that immediate action would be taken against the land grabbers. "The TSWB is serious about encroachments on Waqf properties, but the the board is unaware of the issue of Masjid-e-Osman Shahi. However, we will make sure that the matter is taken up seriously and nobody is spared if found guilty,'' said TSWB chairman Mohammed Saleem.