Recreating history from rubble at Dujana

By Ranbir Singh

The story of Dujana is something like reading from the unreadable rubble of the past. No effort was ever
made to restore the history of the state long forgotten from the pages of recent past. It all happened in our
life time. Loss of its grandeur is one of a painful sights and memories reminding of the gross neglect by
everyone beginning from the State Govt. to the new residents that occupied the cultivable land left behind
by Musalmans that migrated to Pakistan in the wake of partition of Punjab. It is a village that enjoyed the
status of a Capital of a former princely State protected by the British India and ruled by Yusufzai Pathans
that turned into a horrendous tale of ruins, crumbling structures, neglect and plunder of material. Only
vestige of a few fine masonry buildings scattered here and there and graves of the departed littered with
cow dung and household garbage give enough reason to feel sorry about the heritage that belonged to us
in this once prosperous village. Located 28 kms south of Rohtak town and 11 from Jhajjar, its dist.
Headquarters, it can be approached from a small, potholed road from the NH-352. As one closes the
pinnacles of the minarets of the Red Mosque attract attention. On both sides of this moffusil road are
agricultural fields. On the eastern boundary of the village a couple of old time buildings in open brick
masonry and the sign boards attract attention: one of which is a high school building and the other a
Primary Health Center. Both the buildings were designed and built in AD 1929 by masons of Iqtidar Ali
Khan, the last Nawab of this small princely state.

Durjan Shah a wandering mendicant in territory of Dujana bestowed favor to Abdus Samad Khan to set
up his Headquarters or capital of the newly founded principality. In his owner, the Chief named the place
after him. Khan’s ancestors hailed from the Yusufzai territory located in in a remote region in
northwestern frontier area of Hindustan. Iqtidar was the eighth in succession that had witnessed partition
of Punjab and opted to migrate to Lahore. Late Seth Duli Chand of Dujana, whose forefathers were
bankers to the Nawab, had once revealed to this author that he was safely conducted to his new abode but
before leaving he disposed of most of his immovable items. As mark of service, the Nawab had gifted his
own large size portrait in pencil and a Hukkah cast in Belgian mould glass to the father of Seth Duli
Chand.

After settling at the new place, Abdul Samad Khan built a Kachehri and residential haveli and Zenana
quarters following which several other buildings came up and as a few wealthy merchants settled on
invitation they too built a few havelis and shops. The royal buildings were robust in style, fortified and
enduring. In fact, the buildings at Dujana were attractive than those built by the Nawab of Jhajjar at
Roshanara Bagh. In the last decades of the 19th century Mumtaz Ali Khan (b1864-1908d), the fifth of the
Chiefs in succession, had commissioned erection of a fine mosque in front of the Kachehri. It was clad in
red sand stone overlapping brick masonry and embellished with shallow carvings of floral and
geometrical motifs on its fascia and the minarets. The vaulted entrance to the edifice that opened on the
street with a flight of steps is still a visual treat. Dujana had at a time 30 number of small to big mosques
built at various times built in lakhauri bricks and lime mortar. The one called Dhauli Masjid built by Hazi
ji on the southwestern fringe of the village had the largest vault roof design in this region. The devastating
floods of 1995 damaged it. Soon it caved in as its basement got inundated.

The other built heritage of consequence was the Khurshid Palace and an adjoining guest house –popularly
known as Bhagh wali Kothi. Khurshid Ali Khan, 8th Nawab of Dujana had built in 1919 this new and
spacious bungalow in traditional style bearing some colonial architectural features in the rear of the Red
Mosque built by his father. It is now in ruins whereas the Bagh wali Kothi is in shambles. During the
long reign of 144 years, the princely state looked after 23 villages: its territory was close to 259 square
kilometers comprising Dujana and Mehrana –an adjoining village, and 21 other villages including two
large viz. Bahu Jholri and Nahar, as disjointed territory in the south providing the Chief a revenue of
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about Rs.77 thousand in 1948. The British had allowed the Nawab to maintain a 25 cavalry and 140
infantry and had gifted four 16 pounder cannons with a Treaty to assist the British as and when needed.
The cannons cast in a foundry in Bengal were lying in neglect when the pieces were got removed by L.
Isa Das, formerly Collector at Rohtak and restored and installed; two of them now adore the gates of the
official residence of the Governor of Haryana and the remaining at Mansarovar Park at Rohtak.

Abdus Samad Khan was a soldier of fortune and had served Peshwa Baji Rao but later shifted loyalty and
joined General Lake in campaign against Scindia of Gwalior. Due to his unstinted carrier and faithful
services rendered to General Lake, he was awarded the territory in Haryana to set up a vassal state under
the British. The Sanad or certificate of the award was granted on 4th May, 1806 in perpetuity.

The property of the State withered in the years following partition of Punjab and accession of the territory
in 1948 by Govt. of Haryana. It was allotted to the Department of Education that cared little for its
maintenance. Neither the parent department nor the Department of Archaeology ever took interest in the
maintenance of the heritage of the princely State of Dujana with the result that fatigue and weathering in
addition to vegetation took the toll. The memorial tombs of the family of the Nawabs and a graveyard
adjacent to the Kachehri are in shambles. Several inscription stones were removed including the
decorative work in stone of the memorial of Hazi ji. Similar is the fate of official buildings of the Nawab
at Bahu Jholri & Nahar. Now anything that remains of some notice at Dujana are the fine masonry
buildings of high school and the Hospital from which a PHC is now run apart from a uniquely built large
masonry well –Dargu Walah, in front of the School. Most buildings of Nawab’s time that were
documented with time intervals by the author fell apart within a short period of 25 years.
275, Sector-2, HUDA, Rohtak-124 001.