Given that one of the “nine jewels” in the court of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, the tomb of Tanssene, is worthy of protecting the tomb of Tansen, the Madhya Pradesh High Court dismissed an appeal seeking permission to perform religious and cultural activities on the grave of Hazrat Sheikh Muhammad Gaus in Gwalior.
The mausoleum of Hazrat Sheikh Muhammad Gaus was declared a protected monument of national importance in 1962 under ancient monuments and archaeological sites and Remnants Act, 1958.
A bench of Justice Anand Pathak and Justice Hardesh stated that the memorial “is worthy of excessive care and caution” and no such activity sought by the appellant could be allowed.
“… Constitutional vision and constitutional ethics must be strong on individual and vested interests. This (monument) is eligible to be protected with excessive care and caution, and no activity sought by the petitioner can be allowed, not that the monument loses its originality, sanctity and vitality.”
According to court documents, the premises of the monument have the graves of both music Mestro Tansen and Sufi Saint Hazrat Sheikh Muhammad Gaus since the 16th century.
The court documents states that Tansen was remembered for his classical Dhrupad compositions. The court said, “Dhrupad, an epic form of music, is invented by Raja Man Singh Tomar (ruler of Gwalior) in medieval times,” the court said, arguing that the monument where he is placed to rest, is worthy of conservation and protection.
The court was working with the appeal of a Syed Sabla Hasan, who claimed that she is the legal successor of Sajjada Nashin (spiritual caretaker) and Hazrat Sheikh Muhammad Gaus.
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It was argued on their behalf that various religious and cultural practices were demonstrated in the Dargah complex for more than 400 years and that their disinfection, arbitrary and illegal by India’s Archaeological Survey after the announcement of the site as a protected monument.
The court insisted that “it is the duty of the ASI and the district administration to save this monument of national importance with great care and strictness” to preserve the monument carrying history and culture.
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