Hyderabad: Thousands gathered to bid adieu to the last titular Nizam VIII, Mukarram Jah Bahadur, at Asaf Jahi ancestral graveyard on the Macca Masjid premises. He was buried with state honours on Wednesday evening.
Mukarram Jah’s mortal remains were shrouded in the royal flag of the Nizams and he was laid to rest after the Asr prayers. The customary silence, police
bands and gunshots sent the crowds into a frenzy, with chants of ‘Allahu Akbar’ resonating in the area.
The last titular Nizam’s grave was adjacent to the grave of his father, Mir Himayat Ali Khan.
Shops and business establishments near Charminar in the old city remained shut as a mark of respect to the departed royal.
Local historians said this was the first time a body was taken inside, close to the pulpit of the mosque, as everyone else’s last rites are conducted outside the main structure of the Macca Masjid.
Apart from members of the Nizam’s family, the Ulemas representing different top seminaries were also part of the congregation. The funeral prayer was led by Mohammad Rizwan Qureshi, the Khateeb of Mecca Masjid.
Home minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali, scores of TRS leaders, AIMIM MLAs Syed Ahmed Pasha Quadri, Jaffer Hussain Meraj, Kausar Mohiuddin, Mumtaz Ahmed Khan, Ahmed Balala and MLC, Mirza Riyaz-ul-Hassan Effendi were also in attendance.
Following the Asr prayers, as the imam was gearing up for the Namaz-e-Janaza, there was commotion amongst the attendees as they tried to force themselves through to the front rows, which delayed the event for a few minutes.
After continuous requests by the imam for the people to stay put, following Fatiha and Durood prayers, the body was shifted towards the burial chamber as the crowds jostled to get a glimpse of the last titular Nizam, before he was put to rest, for eternity.
Mukarram Jah was born to Mir Himayat Ali Khan alias Azam Jah Bahadur, the first son of Mir Osman Ali Khan, the seventh Nizam of the princely state of Hyderabad before it was merged with the Indian Union in 1948.
