Mewa Shah Graveyard

Mewa Shah Graveyard^[1][2][3][4] (Urdu: میوە شاه قبرِستان) is located in SITE Town, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, and is one of the largest and oldest graveyards of Karachi. This graveyard is spread over 1,000 acres and runs alongside the Lyari River. It has the graves of Muslims, Christians, Hindus and Jews.^[1]

It is named after the 19th Century Sufi, Mewa Shah, who struggled against the British colonial rule in Karachi, British India. He was jailed and eventually exiled by the British. According to the legend, Mewa Shah climbed the ship taking him into exile, said his prayers on the waves of the Arabian Sea and mounted a large fish which took him back to the shores of Karachi.^[3][5]

Notable figures

Kadu Makrani (real name being Qadir Baksh Rind Baloch) was executed by hanging in the Karachi Central Jail in November 1887. He was buried in Mewa Shah Graveyard.^[1] Makrani was a 19th-century insurgent who operated mainly in Kathiawar, Gujarat and was born and raised in Makran. He is famously known for opposing and resisting British rule and rule by the elite class of Gujarat in favor of the rights of the poor lower class and is considered one of the significant freedom fighters against the British Raj.^[1]

References

1. Kashif Hussain. "Karachi's cemeteries: A grave business". The Express Tribune newspaper (NEWSLAB magazine). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
2. Jamal Khurshid (1 September 2019). "Home secy told to explain why Uzair Baloch not interrogated about four missing persons". The News International newspaper. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
3. Kashif Hussain (8 April 2019). "Grave concerns of a gravedigger". The Express Tribune newspaper. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
4. Abbasi, Reema (23 November 2014). "Footprints : In defiance of bigoted times". Dawn newspaper. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
5. Asim Butt (11 August 2005). "Pakistan's mystical Islam thrives". BBC News website. Retrieved 30 November 2023.