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Encroachers evicted from Makka Darzi Imambada in UP’s Sitapur
As many as 15-20 zardozi workers, who occupied the place, evicted. The settlement was causing damage to the said structure, says sub-divisional magistrate
LUCKNOW After a purported video of a man vandalising the burj (a pointed structure) of the 188-year-old Makka Darzi Imambada in Sitapur’s Khairabad town went viral on social media recently, the district administration on Wednesday evicted the encroachers living on the premises for a long time.
“As many as 15-20 zardozi workers, who had occupied the place, were evicted. The settlement was causing damage to the said structure,” said Gyanendra Kumar Dwivedi, sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), Sitapur.
He said the anti-encroachment drive was carried out in the presence of local police, mutawalli Mohammad Ali from the Sunni Central Waqf Board and other officials. “We have written to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to take over this structure for maintenance,” the SDM added.
After the purported video went viral, Lucknow-based lawyer and heritage activist S Mohammed Haider had filed a written complaint seeking action against the encroachers and those who vandalised the structure. The complaint was directed to the SP (Sitapur), the district magistrate and the divisional commissioner in Lucknow.
The Sitapur administration inspected the structure and identified the encroachers. A week after that, on Wednesday, the encroachers were removed.
Earlier, several heritage enthusiasts from the city raised questions over the crumbling state of the structure and made efforts to crowd-fund some basic repairs for it in 2021.
The ASI, in its letter (dated March 29, 2023) to the UP Sunni Waqf Board, had asked the board to remove the encroachments to include the structure on its list of protected sites.
If historians are to be believed, ‘Makka Darzi’ was constructed in 1835 by Makka, a close confidant of the then King Nasir-ud-din Haider of Oudh. Makka is believed to have been the only tailor in the entire kingdom to fulfil Nasir-ud-din’s passion for European dresses.
