TCN News
Aligarh: Priceless belongings with sentimental values of India’s first education minister and freedom fighter, Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad were today donated to Aligarh Muslim University by his grand niece, Husnara Naheed Salim, who had jointly inherited the belongings with her brother Nadim and sisters Nikhat and Ishrat from her uncle and Maulana Azad’s nephew, Nooruddin Ahmed.
The belongings were handed over to Aligarh Muslim University to be displayed in the museum of Varsity’s Maulana Azad Library. AMU Vice Chancellor, Lt General Zameer Uddin Shah (Veteran) received the belongings from Maulana Azad’s family in presence of AMU Pro Vice Chancellor, Brigadier S Ahmad Ali (Veteran); Nabi Hasan, University Librarian; AMU; Javaid Akhter, Registrar, A R Kidwai, Shamim Ahmad and other academicians and dignitaries.
Saira Haleem Shah, daughter of AMU Vice Chancellor, General Shah has played an important role in facilitating the donation.
General Shah also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Maulana Azad’s family members on the occasion. The MoU has declarations of items donated by Naheed Salim and AMU to preserve and prominently display these items in the AMU Library Museum. The MoU also stated setting up of an Advisory Committee, which has been approved by the AMU Vice Chancellor and family members of Maulana Azad including Naheed Salim, Nadeem Salim and Munawar Khalid. The MoU also stated that AMU will soon establish a Maulana Azad Centre for study and research of the Freedom Movement.
The donated belongings include teapots used by Maulana Azad, an old version of ‘Omar Khayyam’ with Persian and English translations, a vintage pair of Ray Ban, antique watches, Sherwanis, Kurtas and trousers worn by Maulana Azad, Begum Zuleikha’s clothes, her ‘paan-daan’ and two important files, a dinner set with Maulana Azad’s initials, letters penned in Urdu and books in Arabic among other items.
As the first Education Minister, Maulana Azad shared a long association with Aligarh Muslim University. AMU Vice Chancellor said that the University is delighted and honored to have this collection bequeathed to us and all treasures donated to AMU are either kept in the museum or the library. He added that this will be adequately displayed in our Maulana Azad library. “We owe a great sense of gratitude to the family for giving this collection to us,” said General Shah.
Meanwhile, Naheed Salim said, “we wanted to give this collection to someone who would look after it carefully and would display the collection, the way it should be.” She added that we are happy that AMU has taken the responsibility of taking care of Maulana Azad’s belongings.