MULTAN, Oct 15: The tomb of Hazrat Sultan Ahmed Qattal in Jalalpur Pirwala is in a dilapidated condition due to the negligence of the authorities concerned.

Jalalpur Pirwala is situated on the bank of an old river known as Bharti, which occasionally gets water overflowing from the River Chenab.

According to the locals, the town was founded by Sultan Ahmad Qattal, a descendant of Syed Jalaluddin Bukhari Surkhposh of Uch Sharif. Others say a Langh or Awan named Jalal founded the town and later Sultan Ahmad Qattal settled here.

The centre of attraction in the town is the magnificent tomb of Sultan Ahmad Qattal -- an example of the Multani style of architecture. The tomb is square in plan and built in three receding stages as it soars high. The beautifully carved entrance is on the southern side and mehrab on the western. The other two sides were originally fitted with carved wooden grills fixed in the opening. The staircase is provided in the southwest corner of the western wall, allowing excess to the roof of the first storey. The surface of the first storey is decorated with glazed tiles laid in a variety of patterns. Time, neglect and vagaries have affected this monument badly, but the north side has been worst hit by weathering.

Besides main building of the tomb, there are two structures within the complex that are of some interest. In the centre of the southern wall of enclosure is an old hall having the graves of the descendants of the saint and there are three perforated wooden jails, one each in southern, eastern and western wall.

In front of the entrance to hall is a veranda with wooden arched doorways. The roof of veranda consists of beams with brackets and battens. The ceiling was decorated with paintings in typical local style, but now it has been demolished by the Auqaf department.

The brickwork of the ground storey is badly affected by salt and glazed tiles are missing or chipped. There is a need to replace two wooden perforated doors of the tomb that have been damaged with the passage of time. Underpinning is required at various places of the tomb, while there is a need to reconstruct the flat roof of the grave of one of caretakers of the tomb who was buried near the saint.

Giving introduction of the saint, local resident Mehboob Tabish said Sultan Ahmed Qattal was born in Uch Sharif in 949A.H/1542A.D. He went on pilgrimages to Baghdad, Karbala and Makkah and finally returned to Multan, where he preached to Lakhwera and Saldora tribes in the Neeli Bar for some time and converted them to Islam. In 990AH/1582AD, he shifted to Jalalpur and died there in 1041AH/1631AD.

Talking about the myth about the title of Qattal for the saint, Tabish said according to a tradition the saint got his education from Hazrat Ali Sarwar of Kahror Pakka. One day when his teacher was sleeping some sparrows began to twitter. Fearing that the noise might disturb his teacher's sleep, the saint hushed them by wishing them death. As a result, all sparrows died instantly. When Hazrat Ali Sarwar woke up he learnt about the incident and named his student as Qattal or killer.

Tabish said historians did not agree with this myth, as they believed that Hazrat Ali Sarwar came to Kahror Pakka in 660A.H/1261A.D. from Delhi and died more than three centuries before Sultan Ahmed Qattal was born.

He said 10 years ago the archaeology department prepared a scheme costing Rs2.4 million for the conservation and repair of this fast decaying monument, but the Auqaf department sanctioned only Rs1 million for this purpose.

Archaeology department Multan head Malik Ghulam Muhammad said an estimate of Rs7 million had been sent to the Auqaf department and preservation work would begin immediately after the release of funds.