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Who Is Rani Kamlapati And Why Habibganj Station Will Adopt Her Name?

Who Is Rani Kamlapati And Why Habibganj Station Will Adopt Her Name?

MP (Heart of India) has the first ISO-certified railway station in India in the capital city, Bhopal. The redeveloped Habibganj station has all world-class facilities and will be inaugurated soon. The state government has decided to give it a new identity by renaming it after the Gond queen Rani Kamlapati.

This is not the first time major developments have acquired her name. The city has Rani Kamlapati Bridge, museum, and palace after the most beautiful queen of her time. However, her beauty is not the reason why Habibganj Station is deemed to be Rani Kamlapati station.

Read further to know the real reason and story of this Gond queen.

Who Is Gond Queen Rani Kamlapati?

gond queen rani kamlapatiRani Kamlapati or Kamlavati was the wife of the king of Ginnorgarh, Nizam Shah. He had 6 more wives but she had unmatched beauty and talent. This earned her the priority status in Nizam’s life but they could not stay together for long.

Nizam’s nephew Alam Shah had eyes upon his kingdom, wealth, and wife. To remove him from his way, Alam poisoned Nizam but his intentions to marry Kamlapati did not get fulfilled. She flew from the fort with her son Nawal Shah who was a baby at that time and planned revenge of her husband’s death.

Also Read: 5 Forts Defining Historic Events Of Chhatrapati Shivaji’s Life

Bribed Dost Mohammad Khan To Take Revenge

Rani Kamlapati did not have the money and army to kill Alam Shah. She promised a sum of thousand rupees to Dost Mohammad Khan in order to provide her protection and her husband’s murderer. He agreed and killed Shah as per the offer. But, Rani could not give him the full amount so she paid him only a part and instead offered the part of Bhopal.

Dost Mohammad Killed Rani Kamlapati’s Son

Few historians say he was very loyal to the Gond queen but some believe he killed her son Nawal Shah to get control over the city. Rani Kamlapati also died by committing suicide in 1723. This ended the reign of Kamlapati and the era of Dost Mohammad Khan began. He is known as the founder of Bhopal state.

Reason Behind Renaming Habibganj Station As Rani Kamlapati Station

rani kamlapti station

via:naidunia

Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan wrote a letter to the Centre for renaming the station and explained the same behind the motive. The 18th-century Gond queen who was the widow of Nizam was the last ruler of the Gond kingdom.

Also Read: Why Indian Railways Trains Have ‘X’ Sign on the Last Bogie?

The group of aboriginal peoples known as Gond was the largest tribal community in India. It is now designated as Scheduled Tribes. Around 2 million Gond people are there living in 8 states of the country namely Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh.

Among all, Madhya Pradesh shares the largest population of the Gond tribe. So, the new Rani Kamlapati station is a part to honor her legacy and the contribution of this tribe.

 

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