Encroachments of Pathan-era monuments in Delhi eat up slice of history

NEW DELHI: Tucked away in Mehrauli, three Lodi-era monuments—two mosques and a tomb—have escaped the local authorities’ attention and memory. They have turned into popular haunts for slum-dwellers and shopowners. According to experts, all the three buildings are more than 700 years old.
Growing encroachments and vandalism by slum inhabitants have restricted access to these structures over the years.The owners of jhuggis have, over the decades, established their residence within the structures. With new alterations being made in the area every few months, historians say that it is just a matter of time before the original character of the monuments is lost irrevocably.
The three monuments are overshadowed by their more popular neighbour, ASI-protected Jahaz Mahal, which is just a short distance away. While the latter enjoys central protection with conservation of the main structure being taken up time and again, these buildings are barely visible from the main road. “To reach these monuments, you have to find your way through a maze of slums that have spread all over. Locals are using the interiors of the buildings as extensions of their residence, and the façade has been defaced completely,” says a conservationist. Piles of garbage lie next to each building; if you are able to go inside any of these structures, you will find them in a shambles and about to fall apart. Dish antennas have been drilled into the dome of one of the tombs with a portion at the rear is serving as a cowshed. Slum-dwellers are hostile to visitors in the area.
When the Delhi government signed an MoU with Intach for conservation of 155 historical buildings, these structures were also identified. Experts say the failure to implement these plans, including conservation and protection of these monuments, is posing a threat to the buildings. “Already about 30 buildings in the Zafar Hasan list have vanished. If things go at this rate, many more could meet the same fate,” says an expert. Currently only 15 monuments in Phase I have been conserved but not given final protection under the Delhi Archaeology Act, while conservation under Phase II, where 18 buildings would be attended to, has been on hold for about a year for lack of funds.
Two of the buildings are mosques but the ownership of the area is disputed. While the Delhi Wakf Board claims that the masjids and the adjoining land are their properties, DDA calls it their land. An anti-encroachment drive a few years ago had sparked off violence with locals alleging attack on one of the mosques. Since then, the matter lies in court but encroachments have been thriving.