Lot of people have heard about Junagarh and its history goes back to 2000 years. Our first stop in discovering Junagarh was the local museum and at an entry price of Rs.5/- it is a steal to see the Nawab's portraits, weaponry, silverware, howdahs and even the entire Darbar hall set up with its silver chairs. The surname of the Junagarh Nawabs, Babi, might sound familiar.
The 2000-year-old Junagarh Fort, known for its rich history, remains of the palace, and stories about Ranak Devi, is especially fascinating. The fort withstood a 12-year siege before finally succumbing to perfidy of the king's nephews. The fort has two canons which were left behind by the Turks @ Diu after a lost battle, a dilapidated palace (with the favourite Indian writings of today), two intricate wells as water reservoirs (created 100 years ago) to support the local population. Within the precincts, there is also a resting place dating from King Ashoka's days (the guide called it a 5-star hotel from those days). This place has its own water system, baths, and resting areas, all carved from a single rock, showcasing ancient India's engineering skills.
The army built two detailed wells inside the fort during peace time, so people could have plenty of water and access it by walking down steps. Each well is at least a 150 feet deep and is over 1000 years old. Mount Girnar forms a beautiful backdrop to the Junagarh fort and the highest temple has 9,000 steps.
Junagarh boasts a fascinating relationship with the story of India's independence. The last Nawab of Junagarh along with his Prime Minister wanted to accede to Pakistan. His logic being Kashmir as a Muslim majority state with a Hindu ruler can accede to India, why not Junagarh with its Muslim Nawab and the predominant Hindu population accedes to Pakistan. Junagarh is a fair bit of distance away from the Pakistan border (the whole of Kutch lies in between). Junagarh was finally coerced into joining the Indian Union and the Nawab and Prime Minister fled to Pakistan.
Parveen Babi, a former actress, comes from a Nawab family, and Shahnawaz Bhutto, the father of Zulfikar and the grandfather of Benazir, was the Prime Minister of Junagarh during independence. Mohammed Ali Jinnah's family came from a town near Porbandar, which is 100 km away from where Mahatma Gandhi was born.
Our final stop was Mohabbat Maqbara a beautiful tomb dedicated to love with Islamic, Hindu and European influences. The Junagarh Fort and Mohabbat Maqbara in Gujarat need better protection and maintenance. We did visit the old and new temples at Somnath, and it is trying to recapture its past glory.
Do plan to visit this part of Gujarat, which is very different from Ahmedabad, Baroda and Surat circuit. More details are available at the Gujarat tourism site.
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