The Shiva Temple inside Katra Masjid Complex supposedly built by Murshid Kuli Khan who renamed Makhsudabad to Murshidabad. The Shiva Temple is also attributed to Murshid Kuli Khan. According to local legends (and history) Murshid Kuli paid homage to his Hindu lineage by building a Shiva temple inside the Masjid Complex, as he was born a Hindu.
But this may be far from the truth.
Looking at the position of this temple, it can be assumed that this temple was not part of the original Katra complex. According to some elderly locals, Murshid Kuli after taking over the main Devi temple and converting it to a Masjid wanted to destroy the Shiva temple as well.* But since already a lot of blood had been shed, he was advised not to attack the religious sentiments of the locals. So the temple was spared and after a few years down the line, the outer perimeter of the Katra complex was extended to include the temple inside the masjid complex. Later a narrative was concocted that Murshid Kuli Khan was a nawab with a big heart who not only respects all religions but also remembers that he was originally Hindu, hence he wants to keep this Shiva temple as a sign of his Hindu roots after converting the Hindu fort in to a mosque. Later this narrative was further changed and the construction of this ancient Shiva temple was attributed to Murshid Kuli Khan. Since history is written by the rulers, no one could stop this manufactured lie from being written in the books! And after a few generations, it became known as the truth…
*’Katra’ means to cut or chop. A lot of the native population was cut or chopped by Murshid Kuli’s army to capture the fort and convert it in to a masjid. Hence it is called the ‘Katra’ masjid. Nowadays people believe that only vegetables were cut here…
Image: Sriti O Chetona original.
