MBT demands Nizam Museum, criticises Centre’s stance
HYDERABAD: Majlis Bachao Tehreek (MBT) has accused the BJP led Union government of adopting a “step-motherly” and discriminatory approach towards Hyderabad and the legacy of the Nizam, particularly over the issue of the Nizam’s jewellery.
MBT spokesman Amjed Ullah Khan cited a recent reply in the Rajya Sabha by Union culture and tourism minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, who said there was no proposal to shift the Nizam’s jewellery to Hyderabad. The minister was responding to a question raised by Rajya Sabha MP S Niranjan Reddy.
173 jewels with RBI since 1995
Khan said it was “shocking” that 173 historically significant pieces of the Nizam’s jewellery have remained with the Reserve Bank of India since 1995, and alleged that the Centre was refusing to return them to Hyderabad, which he described as their rightful home.
He demanded the immediate establishment of a dedicated Nizam Museum in Hyderabad, on the lines of the Salar Jung Museum, and sought the transfer of all Nizam valuables, including the 173 jewels, for public display and preservation.
Cites Nizam’s role in Hyderabad’s growth
Khan said the Nizam of Hyderabad was a secular and progressive ruler whose contributions laid the foundation of modern Hyderabad. He pointed to institutions such as Osmania University, Osmania General Hospital, Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences, the Telangana High Court, the Hyderabad Deccan railway station at Nampally, the State Central Library, legislature buildings, irrigation projects, roads, hospitals, courts and other civic infrastructure.
He said the Nizam spent personal wealth on public welfare, education, healthcare, the judiciary and urban development, and that Hyderabad’s emergence as a major city owed much to this legacy. “Erasing or sidelining this legacy is an injustice to history and to the people of Telangana,” Khan said.
Khan urged the Union government to end what he termed a discriminatory approach, acknowledge the Nizam’s role in nation-building, and establish a Nizam Museum in Hyderabad with all associated valuables, including the jewellery currently held by the RBI.
