More commnly known as Mau Wali Khan or more respectfully as Mau Wali Dada Mian, Qavi Khan was my 6g grandfather. Birth probably between 1585 and 1600, which would actually make him my 8 or 9g grandfather, so there maybe a few generations missing from the chart prepared by my grandfather. Oral tradition has it that Qavi Khan was the Diwan of Nawab Rashid Khan.
We do not know much about Qavi Khan other than that his tomb is in Kaimganj, but there is a lot of recorded information about Rashid Khan, whose real name was Allahdad. He was the son of Jalal-ud-Din Raushani, commonly known as Jalala, who was the son of Shaikh Bayazid who styled himself Pir-i-Roshan and founded the Raushani (‘illuminati’) sect. Shaikh Bayazid’s father was Shaikh Adbullah, who claimed to have been separated by seven generations from Shaikh Siraj ud-Did Ansari. Although adherents of the Raushani sect were regarded as heretics, Shaikh Bayazid, and his descendants for two generations, nevertheless carried a great emotional and personal appeal amongst the Pathan tribes. They were able to assemble armies and engage in military campaigns against the Mughals. Indeed, there was a continuous campaign from the time of Emperor Akbar to that of Emperor Shah Jahan to uproot this sect in the Province of Kabul.
Allah Dad left the Roh country in 1602 after the death of his father Jalal-ud-Din and migrated to India. (The date of his immigration may not be accurate, I'm going by the date of the death of his father which occurred in 1600/01). The exact reasons for his departure are not clear but it appears that he had disputed with his brothers, “owing to the short sightedness and the mutual envy of Afghans ”. Sometime later after immigrating to India, he enlisted in the service of Emperor Jahangir. The Emperor has mentioned him in several places in his autobiography, Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri. On 25 September 1617 he was awarded the title Rashid Khan and honoured with a narm parm - shawl (Page 392). In fact it was in 1616 that he was given the title of Khan (page (Is it possible that he may have immigrated to Mau Shamshabad, now a district of Kamiganj, settled himself there and then joined the service of the Emperor? We know that he definitely had connections with Kaimganj, as he was buried there having died in Nandair in Deccan. He therefore must have regarded Kaimganj as his new adopted home. Is it that Qavi Khan immigrated to Kaimganj with him at the same time, or was he already established there?
Although the exact dates are not available, Rashid Khan was first appointed Subedar of Khandesh and then of Telangana in Shah Jahan’s reign. Certainly according to Shah Jahan Nama in 1637, Rashid Khan was administering Telangana when Shah Jahan despatched his sister Bibi Alai, together with a number of relatives and followers of Abdul Qadir, son of Ahdad and Bibi Alai, to Deccan under Rashid Khan’s supervision. Rashid Khan was then the Subedar (Provincial Governor) of Telangana. Indeed, a reading of Tuzk-e- Jahangiri suggests that Allahdad was in the service of the Mughal emperors since at least 1615. We know that he died in the 22nd year of Emperor Shah Jahan's reign, in 1058 A.H. (1648 A.D.) while he was the Governor of Nandair. The Maathir-ul Umara also confirms that he was laid to rest in Shamsabad Mau where he had established a village, and laid out a garden. We know that that viallge is called Mau Rashidabad.
In Maathir-ul-Umara it is stated that Rashid Khan was a very likeable person. He was unique in his days for integrity, good intentions, comprehension, magnanimity and fellow feeling, and was unequalled for his courage, bravery, politeness, humanity, amiability and consideration. During the long time that he spent in the Deccan he was by his correct advice and dauntless courage a valuable ally of the governors of the Deccan. They did nothing of importance without consulting him. He maintained an efficient force; all his men were devoted to him and treated him as a spiritual leader. This is so even today in Kaimganj where he is known as Nawab Rashid Mian, a term (Mian) used in devotion and courtesy.
His date of death 1648, throws a bit of doubt over the accuracy of the descendant chart of Qavii Khan. Cross referencing this date to my maternal ancestors, Mau Wali would be our 8 or 9g Grandfather probably born between 1580's and 1600's. This means of course, as I suspected, that the shijraa according to our Grand father has missing at least two or three generations from Mau Wali Khan upwards. |
