Cursed by saint, Tughlaqabad Fort gets few visitors

“Ya rahe ujjar ya base gujjar,” which translates to “either it will be left desolate or occupied by the nomadic herdsmen” is how Sufi saint Nizamuddin Auliya, according to folklores, had once cursed Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq who ruled Delhi from 1320-1325.

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While some of the buildings built by Mughals in Delhi are in prime condition, the fort of Tughlaqabad is in ruins with hardly any visitors confirming the curse of the saint.

The Tughlaqabad Fort, which once served as a symbol of power of the Tughlaq dynasty, was built by Ghiyasudddin Tughlaq to counter Mongol attacks. However, it was soon abandoned after completion. After ascending the throne, Ghiyasudddin Tughlaq made it mandatory for all workers of Delhi to work on the fort. Around the same time, Auliya was building a ‘baoli’ (step well) at the place where his dargah stands today in Delhi. The workers worked all day at the fort and at night, they would work on the ‘baoli’.

Angered by this, the Sultan banned the supply of oil to Nizamuddin so that lamps could not be lit at the construction site of the ‘baoli’. It infuriated Auliya and he then cursed the fort.

“We hardly have visitors here. Unlike Red Fort or Qutub Minar, this fort gets a maximum of 20-30 visitors per day. Plus, it is vulnerable to encroachment. There is thick vegetation, which is part of the Aravalli wildlife corridor. Adilabad Fort is nearby. Even that place wears a deserted look,” a security guard deputed by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) said requesting anonymity.

Old pictures show that the entrance of the fort had a causeway connecting to the tomb of Tughlaq and an artificial lake used to flow under it. However, the British broke the causeway to pave the way for Mehrauli-Badarpur road.

Today, the fort is frequented by land squatters. The ASI had already served 1,248 notices for various structural encroachments within the fort.

The Kalkaji sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) informed the Delhi High Court in February that in consultations with the ASI, physical demarcation of the fort’s protected area shall be completed within three weeks.

In 2023, the ASI had carried out demolitions to remove encroachment. It had deployed more security guards to protect the fort from further encroachment.