Khwaja Abdul Ghani
Nawab Khwaja Abdul Ghani | |
---|---|
Dhaka Nawab Family | |
Father | Khwaja Alimullah |
Mother | Zinat Begum |
Religion | Sunni Islam |
He introduced the
Background
Khwaja Abdul Ghani was the second son of
Abdul Ghani was a
In 1846, Khwaja Abdul Ghani inherited all the family properties, landed or otherwise, as an indivisible concern by a waqfnama executed by his father Khwaja Alimullah. As the mutawalli (trustee) he was made the sole administrator of the estate, as well as the sole representative and spokesperson of the family. He had the sole responsibility to distribute the family income as individual allowances and to select a successor as he deemed fit.
Abdul Ghani had four wives – Ismatunnesa Khanam, Umda Khanam, Munni Bibi, and Dulhan Bibi. His successor, Khwaja Ahsanullah, was his second son born to his first wife Ismatunnesa (d. 1887). He had 10 other children and 21 known grandchildren. Among his non-succeeding grandchildren the most famous was poet Khwaja Muhammad Afzal, son of his daughter Nurjahan Khanam and Nawab Khwaja Yusuf Jan Khan Bahadur.
Political views
Abdul Ghani was loyal to the
My presence in the station at this critical moment inspires my countrymen with hope and confidence in the British Government and prevents the evil-doers from carrying out their wicked designs. My absence, on the other hand, will cause a general panic and precipitate matters which we are so anxious to prevent.
Abdul Ghani served the Raj long as member of the Municipality and the Magistracy, and was known as a fine arbiter of conflicts. In 1869, he settled a violent Shi'ite-Sunni riot through arbitration.
Abdul Ghani struck a good relation with
Positions and titles
- 1864: Nominated Commissioner of the freshly erected Dhaka municipality
- 1866: Appointed Honorary Magistrate and a member of Bengal Legislative Council
- 1867: Appointed additional member of the Governor General's Legislative Council
- 1871: Decorated Companion of Star of India (CSI)
- 1875: Vested the title of Nawab
- 1876: Granted 7 Turuk Sawar (horse mounted guards)
- 1877: Title of Nawab made hereditary
- 1886: Decorated Knight Commander of Star of India (KCSI)
- 1892: Vested the title of Nawab Bahadur
Contributions
Abdul Ghani developed the property he inherited and was put in charge of, taking it to height of the history of the family. He also contributed significantly to development of Dhaka. He introduced gaslights to light Dhaka streets,[citation needed] and running water facilities at his own expense. Nawab Ghani's water works cost about Rs 250,000.[3] Its foundation stone was laid by Lord Northbrook on 6 August 1874. He also established a Langarkhana (asylum) in Dhaka in 1866 for the destitute, a high school at Kumartuli in 1863 (which later became Khwaja Salimullah College, named after his grandson), and the Abdul Ghani High School in Jamurki, Tangail.
Ahsan Manzil
Abdul Ghani engaged Martin & Company, a European construction and engineering firm, from 1859 to 1872 to develop the kuthi in Kumartuli and rebuilt it into one of Dhaka's finest landmarks.[citation needed] Renamed Ahsan Manzil after his son and successor Khwaja Ahsanullah,[4] it became the seat of power for the family. In the newly built Rang Mahal (the older building was known as Andar Mahal) he received Lord Northbrook and Lord Dufferin as guests.
Shahbag
Abdul Ghani restored former property of Aratun and Cook to its lost glory as Bag-e-Badshahi (the Garden of Kings) of the Mughals, and renamed it Shahbag. He expanded the area further by buying land from the son of Nuruddin Hossain, who set up Nurkhan Bazar in the area. It was further expanded by more land bought in 1876–77, bringing the whole land area to 26.5 hectares. He started the garden house in 1873, which took several years to complete.
Buckland Bund
Abdul Ghani was the first to donate funds for the project undertaken by City Commissioner C T Buckland to create a dam to protect Dhaka from flooding and river erosion, along with Kalinarayan Roy, the zamindar of Bhawal. In the 1870s, he also undertook its extension westward from Wiseghat. Like the Strand, the Buckland Bund came to serve Dhaka people as a promenade of enjoyment. It is where the Bhawal Sannyasi appeared covered in ashes.
Dilkusha
In 1866, Nawab abdul ghani purchased the land near the lake of
Dhaka News
Abdul Ghani was one of the proprietors (1856–1858) of the Weekly Dhaka News, the first English newspaper from Dhaka. It was edited by Alenzander R. Forbes as a planters' journal and printed by the first printing press in Dhaka, the Dhaka News Press, founded in 1856.
Dances
Abdul Ghani was a great patron of the arts of the and at European mansions at that time.
During his reign, baijees used to perform regularly for mehfils and mujras at the Rangmahal of Ahsan Manzil, Ishrat Manzil of Shahbagh, and the garden house of Dilkusha. The performance of Mushtari Bai at Shahbag earned much praise from eminent littérateur Abdul Gafur Naskhan. The most prominent baijees were Suponjan, Mushtari Bai, Piyari Bai, Heera Bai, Wamu Bai and Abedi Bai. Among them Suponjan married Swapan Khan, grandson of singer and tabla maestro Mithan Khan.
Theater
Abdul Ghani introduced the first female performers on Dhaka theater stages. In 1876, he invited a theater troupe from
Donations
- For construction of Buckland Bund: Rs 35,000.00
- For renovation of Hoseni Dalan: Rs 20,000.00
- For construction of road leading to tomb of Shah Ali Baghdadi[note 1]: Rs 10,000.00
- For construction of a Female Ward in Mitford Hospital: Rs 25,000.00
- For victims of famine[note 2]: Rs 10,000.00
- For the victims of the flood[note 3]: Rs 10,000.00
- For Lady Dufferin Relief Fund: Rs 10,000.00
- For wounded soldiers of Russo-Turkish War (1787–92): Rs 20,000.00
- For victims of an earthquake in Kashmir: Rs 20,000.00
- For riot victims of Atiya: Rs 10,000.00
- For wounded soldiers of the Franco-Prussian War: Rs 5,000.00
- For Cholera Relief Funds in Italy and France[note 4]: Rs 2,000.00
- For victims of famine in Iran: Rs 3,000.00
- For victims of famine in Lancashire: Rs 7,000.00
- For victims of famine in Ireland: Rs 3,000.00
- For renovation of Nahr-i-Zubaida at Mecca: Rs 40,000.00
References
Principal sources
- OL 30677644M. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
- "Official website of Dhaka Nawab Family". nawabbari.com. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
Other sources
- Sayid Aulad Hasan, Notes on the Antiquities of Dacca, Dacca, 1912
- Lord Charles Hardinge, My Indian Years: 1910–1916, London, 1948
- S.M. Taifoor, Glimpses of Old Dhaka (revised edn.), 1956
- Azimusshan Haider, Dacca: History and Romance in Place Names, 1967
- Rahman Ali Taesh (translated into Bengali by AMM Sharfuddin), Tawarikhey Dhaka, 1985
- Hakim Habibur Rahman (translated into Bengali by Moulana Akram Faruque and Ruhul Amin Choudhury), Asudganey Dhaka, 1990
- Muntasir Mamoon, Dhaka: Smrti Bismrtir Nagari, 1993
Footnotes
- Mirpur (Dhaka)[5]
- Orissa and parts of Bengalwas badly affected, and a Famine Commission was established for the first time.
- ^ Note 3: Flood of 1885: River Bhagirathi burst embankment to seriously affect Satkhira and Khulna. Reported in detail by Flood Committee Report (1927).
- ^ Note 4: Cholera epidemic of 1884: The epidemic killed more than 14,000 people in Naples alone, leading to a national funding of a massive reconstruction plan in Italy and France.[6]
Citations
- ISBN 978-1-84774-062-5.
Nawab Bahadur Sir Khwajah Abdul Ghani Miah, also known as Ghani Miah (Gunny Meah) for short, was bom into a wealthy and prominent Muslim family that traced its origin all the way back to Persia.
- ^ Buckland, Charles Edward (1901). Bengal under the lieutenant-governors; being a narrative of the principal events and public measures during their periods of office, from 1854 to 1898. University of California Libraries. Calcutta : S.K. Lahiri. p. 1029.
- OCLC 987755973.
- OCLC 987755973.
- ISBN 0-520-20507-3.
- ISBN 0-521-89386-0.