In 1654, the soldiers of Kalhora emperor Mian Naseer Muhammad Kalhoro, brought to the court a beautiful woman called Aziman. Known for her beauty throughout the land, Aziman was produced, along with a witness, in the Darbar of Mian Naseer, accused of karo-kari.
As history goes, Emperor Naseer thought it best to invite all notables, tribal chiefs of different tribes and heads of villages to attend a Jirga to settle this karo-kari allegation, against Aziman.
The Jirga convened in the royal Court and remained in session for three days. Finally it reached a conclusion. Aziman will be declared innocent, if she will successfully walk through a wall of fire, 50 feet long. Although it was an un-educated system, still, this was deemed the best way to judge a woman’s innocence at that time. Reluctantly Aziman agreed. But in the process of crossing the wall of fire, Aziman badly burnt herself and though she remained alive, she remained in critical condition. Her feet were completely burnt.
Following Aziman’s horrible task, the Jirga announced that she was innocent and she was acquitted of the karo-kari charges. Subsequently she was named Garhi, meaning innocent in the Sindhi language. However, Aziman’s life had been cut short and she passed away just two years later. But her suffering inspired Mian Naseer Muhammad Kalhoro to do something to change the system. Therefore, in 1656 the Kalhora emperor ordered the construction of an Islamic university that would help tackle an issue as sticky as karo-kari. The university was called Garhi University, in honour of Aziman’s memory. At the same time, the Garhi Mosque was also commissioned; both were setup near the historical city of Kakar, Mian Naseer’s capital.
Thereon, for years to come, the Garhi Islamic University served and educated a number of generations. Naseer Muhammad Kalhoro, who was himself a know Islamic personality of the time, through his trained and expert army officials, provided training to 5000 soldiers, on the trends of Islamic teachings, from this university, every year.
However, now both the university and the mosque are abandoned and in decay. The main parts of Garhi Mosque and Garhi Islamic University have been destroyed and all the main walls of the mosque and university have collapsed due to negligence of the province’s archeology department.
During a recent visit there, I saw locals picking up the old bricks of the university to construct their houses and nobody was there to stop them. The ignorant people of the area don’t know the damage that they are causing to their own heritage.
However, they do attend the grave of Mian Naseer Muhammad Kalhoro and they accept him as their spiritual Islamic leader. And though, the saint and devotees perform their services, nobody is ready to look after the historical Garhi Islamic University and Garhi Mosque.
Amir Bux, a member of the Kalhoro tribe, says that at several times he had tried to bring to the attention of the high officials of archeology department to pay attention and start the repair work of the historical mosque and university. But not a single team, from the concerned department has yet to visit the area.
In 1654, the soldiers of Kalhora emperor Mian Naseer Muhammad Kalhoro, brought to the court a beautiful woman called Aziman. Known for her beauty throughout the land, Aziman was produced, along with a witness, in the Darbar of Mian Naseer, accused of karo-kari.
