The Omar Khalidi Corridor, eponymously named after the famend Hyderabadi scholar, on the Maulana Azad Nationwide Urdu College’s H Ok Sherwani Centre for Deccan Research (HKSCDS), was inaugurated on Thursday, and his private library, from the place he authored a number of books, was made out there to the general public.
Mr Khalidi, later moved to the USA, the place he labored on the Massachusetts Institute of Know-how. The corridor is a collaborative effort of the HKSCDS, the US Consulate Normal, Mr Khalidi’s daughter Aliya Khalidi and spouse Nigar Sultana Khalidi, and philanthropist Abdul Raheman Nakedar. The corridor was inaugurated by MANUU Vice-Chancellor Prof Syed Ainul Hasan and US Consul Normal Jennifer Larson.
“It’s an honour to recognise the contributions of Dr Omar Khalidi and play a component in bringing this marvellous assortment of literature to Hyderabad. Dr. Khalidi’s life and profession acted as a bridge between India and the US in educational and social circles,” Ms Larson mentioned.
In line with Prof Salma Farooqui, Mr Khalidi’s library which was shipped from the USA to the HKSCDS accommodates 1,649 books and newspapers. Cataloguing is in progress, and these books could be digitised by the final week of September. “There was a clamour for Dr Khalidi’s books. Many universities, and other people wished them. It was very nice of Aliya Khalidi and Nigar Khalidi to think about donating this whole assortment to a spot in Hyderabad,” she mentioned, including that library could be open to members of the general public who’re serious about analysis.
As part of the occasion, Canada-based scholar Mohammed Ayub Ali Khan sought to reconcile a number of tales in regards to the Asaf Jahi flag. In a pre-recorded video, Mr Khan mentioned which might be completely different narrations and theories that identify completely different Sufi saints as giving Nizam-ul-Mulk kulchas. Touching upon the complexities of those narrations, he additionally spoke of the account of Mansaram, the Peshi Secretary of the Nizam, who quoted the Nizam as saying. “My identify is Qamruddin, meaning the moon of my religion. Although the mark on the usual represented the moon, individuals thought it represented a spherical piece of bread. This has been persevering with from the time of my grandfather the late Abid Khan and my father Feroz Jung. This legend in regards to the bread on the flag isn’t true, although generally believed,” he mentioned.
Mr Khan mentioned that these contradictory narrations give insights on how “individuals believing them, or selling them, utilise them. It additionally exhibits the significance of those symbols for rival, religious, and social orders,” he mentioned.