Ali Usman Baig : gari shahu

Date of Visit: 21-01-2018

All pictures are owned

Historical writings taken from Majid Sheikh article

The Gate way of Gari Shahu Constructed some 350 years back

In past, my father's eldest sister had a home in the narrow streets of Gari Shahu. We used to visit this place from childhood. I have a long list of relatives who work in Pakistan railways. My maternal and paternal grandfather worked in this department. I have been visiting Gari Shahu and its surroundings from mid-'80s Lahore definitely has a rich historical past, and when talking about Garhi Shahu, one cannot forget but mention the railway station, or the Christian community, or the Burt Hall, that wonderful dance club (Nautch Ghar) that no longer functions. Then there are also the Convent of Jesus and Mary, the Jamia Naimia Mosque, and the Taj and Crown cinemas but surely there is much more to this place than we have ever cared to explore.

Mosque of Shah Abu Alkhair

During the reign of Emperor Aurangzeb, the fame of Abul Khair had spread far and wide. The emperor, wishing that the maximum number of people should benefit from the sage, ordered that a madrassah be built for Abul Khair and a suitable residence be arranged for the scholar. A fireman or a Royal Order was also issued instituting a maintenance allowance for the upkeep of the house and the madrassah and so Abul Khair’s institution was founded. A domed mosque was also built along with rooms for students and dervishes. For some time after that, the area was also known as Khairgarh.

The area is lost with new construction, these are supposed to be constructed over old 350 years old construction. luckily we found remains of an old hujra constructed of an old Mughal era bridge, In the present picture, we are standing in the drawing-room of the house the openings visible is the entrance of the hujra.

Chamber of student now used as store

Another Chamber

There is house constructed above this chmaber, no light could not take clear pictures

Another view of dome

The Dome Ceiling

With my friend Kashif Gurki inisde the chamber on my birthdday

Another view of adjoining chamber

These chambers have still remains of students

Another view of Dome

The Chamber converted into new houses

3 ft wide walls old construction converted into new houses

The connection between two chambers could not travel more

There was fortress and minarets around Gari Shahu, remains of an old wall

Remains of Old Wall

Remains of an Old Wall

Remains of an old Wall

Abul Khair taught in his madressah till the age of 105, and on his death, during the reign of Muhammad Shah, he was buried here. As the Mughal Empire was folding and anarchy was slowly settling in, scholarship and learning were no longer on a premium. Before Maharaja Ranjit Singh came to power in 1799 and finally managed to bring order for 40 odd years. During this period, anarchy reigned supreme and the madressah was taken over by a khalifa by the name of Muhammad Naeem, who taught there but on his death there was a void.

Nearby this madressah, there was a famous mohallah named Thathi Gagga. When the marauders ransacked it, its inhabitants ran off and took shelter in a neighborhood called Fata Shah. Then one day, Abul Khair’s madressah also came under attack by a roaming band of thieves. They had figured that since the madressah was quiet large and had bricked dwellings, there must be some treasure here. But the students and the dervishes had nothing except the clothes on their backs and they were stripped of even these meager belongings as they escaped with their lives.

Then came a gangster by the name of Shahu, and along with his gang of rustlers, he took possession of the buildings meant to accommodate Abul Khair and his scholars. His gang went on a rampage, stealing cattle and other valuables from the area which they then hid in the madressah for safekeeping. If the owners demanded their possessions back, they would return them for a small price otherwise, they would sell their goods.

This was the age when Lehna Singh, Suba Singh, and Gujjar Singh (the three rulers of Lahore) were restricted to their small domains. In between there was no law. The gang of Shahu ruled supreme, and it was from him that the name Garhi Shahu (Fortress of Shahu) came. Shahu died five years later and his men took control of the land. They did not have the same influence as Shahu did so the residents of mohallah Thathi Gagga, who had earlier taken shelter in Fata Shah, found an opportune time and managed to kick Shahu's men out and occupied the buildings for themselves. But Shahu’s name forever remained attached to it and was never changed, even by the British.

The actual fortress building itself had a solid brick boundary wall with towers in all four corners. Portions of the original wall and the towers still exist, incorporated in walls of some of the houses. The entrance is through a large arched gateway to the north, which still exists, although the original door is long gone. Beside the western wall is the domed mosque with its tall minars. It is still known as Abul Khair's Mosque. Some of the original rooms, built for the students are still intact under the modern houses that have sprung up everywhere. Once all the land inside the fortress was built upon, people started building outside the boundary walls and so a number of havelis sprung up all around the original fortress. Then the British came and expanded it even further by laying out the Mayo Road (now renamed Allama Iqbal Road) and establishing residential colonies for the railway employees. Today, the area known as Garhi Shahu is much larger than the original fortress that was built for Abul Khair and then subsequently occupied by Shahu and his gang.