HARIPUR, Feb 27: Located at the edge of Khanpur Dam reservoir, the historical Masjid Rajgan is at the mercy of inclement weather conditions and, to make things worse, the archeology department seems to be looking the other way.
The mosque was built in 1872 by Raja Sultan Jehandad Khan, the grandfather of former senior parliamentarian and chief minister late Raja Sikandar Zaman Khan, who founded the old Khanpur Town. The town was later submerged into the Khanpur Lake and the population was resettled in the new Khanpur and other adjoining areas in late 1970s.
Sharing the story of the construction of mosque, Raja Sheeraz Haider, a local PML-N leader who is the great grandson of Raja Sultan Jehandad Khan, said that when his great grandfather decided to build a mosque in the valley, he invited architects of Islamic art from Delhi.
The architects used bricks and beautifully chiseled black stone in its structure. The wood for doors, cupboards and roof was brought from Leepa valley of Kashmir. It has two big and two small-sized minarets with a dome shaped small minaret mounted in the centre of facade.Important feature of this mosque is that it has four small arched entrances and the main gate is the replica of Jamia Masjid Dehli, which was built by than Emperor Shah Jehan during 1650-1656 AD. Its man boundary wall was constructed with chiseled black stone. The mosque has the capacity of accommodating about 1,000 faithful at a time. The building presents the unique Islamic architecture but it is now being ruined with every passing day because of lack of proper care.
Mr Haider recalled that when the mosque was being constructed, Raja Jehandad Khan announced in the area that the man who had never committed any sin only could lay the foundation stone. But, according to Mr Haider, no one came forward and finally Raja sahib himself had to lay the stone. He said that Raja Jehandad Khan was a God fearing soul and famous for his knowledge about the religion, therefore he also used to issue fatwas (religious decrees) that time.
When Khanpur Dam was built in late 1970s, the whole family along with other inhabitants migrated to the present day Khanpur leaving behind the mosque and their family palace, which was also a unique archeological site. It was also built with chiseled stone and wood with Belgium glass used as windowpanes and for cupboards, tiles were imported from Italy and the door knobs were from France.
He said that the palace incurred a total cost of Rs1.2 million in 1872 and it was completed in ten years, but when we were asked to relocate, the Wapda authorities paid us only Rs900,000 as compensation against property loss, he lamented. He said that that the palace was later destroyed and its valuable fixtures including carved wooden doors, chiseled stone, imported tiles and other valuables were taken away by the Wapda authorities.
To a question, he said that under the Antiquities Act laws the demolition of his family's palace was a crime and the Wapda officials who destroyed it in 2000 were liable to be punishment.
The mosque needs immediate conservation as it is located close to the lake and its outer structure is being damaged due to continuous exposure to humidity. During July to September, when Khanpur Lake is filled to the capacity, the threat is at its maximum.