‘Sardesai Wada’ in Sangmeshwar lies in tatters, but plans to build Sambhaji memorial raises hope

The wada was being used by its owners and their extended families until some 15 years ago. Now the family lives in their home next door and wada lies unused. The wada is located on a five-acre land surrounded by houses of villagers. In its vicinity are several temples, including the famous Karneshwar temple made from black stones. A life-size statue of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj stands tall at the entrance of the village, highlighting the significance of the place.

After Vicky Kaushal-starrer, ‘Chaava’ was released recently, the historic landmark has suddenly come to life with Chhatrapati Sambhaji’s followers constantly making a trip to the Kasba village to have a dekho at the place where their ‘deity’ was captured after a battle.

People not only from Konkan but even across Maharashtra are daily seen going inside out and around the wada, taking pictures and videos for uploading it on the social media. The followers are, however, stumped by the pathetic state of the historical structure.

“It pains to find the wada in such a precarious state. This is the same wada where Chhatrapati Sambhajiraje was captured…It has a significant place in our history. This wada needs to be preserved. A memorial should be set up here so that our future generations get to know about the historical happenings,” said Shivprasad Mane, who had come all the way from Kolhapur.
Roshan Parkhande of Karjat said, “Yes, I have come to see the wada after watching ‘Chaava.’ I thought the wada will be in somewhat better shape. But it is in a real bad shape. I hope the government at least will wake up now to renovate it and preserve it.”

Rakesh Chavan, a local villager, said, “Thanks to Chaava, at least the government has woken up to the bad state of a historic structure and has announced plans to set up a memorial. Our villagers had been demanding that the government should take over the wada and build a memorial befitting the Maratha warrior king.”

As the wada is owned by a private party, the state government has already started holding negotiations with the owners, the Sardesai family, to hand over the wada to the state government.

The issue first cropped up during the current session of state legislature when Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced the government’s intention to build a grand memorial to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj. “In view of the historic significance of the wada, the government will build a grand memorial of Chhatrapati Sambhajiraje is a symbol of bravery and valour…He was ‘Dharmveer’ and ‘Swarajya Rakshak’ and therefore a memorial befitting his stature will come up in the village,” the chief minister had said.

Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam, said, “It was Minister Yogesh Kadam who had first gone to the village and held talks with the Sardesai family for taking over the wada by the state government. So far, the Minister has held three meetings with the owners. The owners have promised to hand over the wada to the state government.”

When approached for his comments, Subash Desai, the owner of the wada, said, “We have no objection to handing over the wada to the state government. We are the owners of the wada since 11th century. However, it will depend on the terms and conditions of the agreement drafted by the government. Let the government first come up with the terms and conditions of the agreement, then we will take the call.”

The Sardesai family said though they are ready to hand over the wada to the state government to honour the memory of Chhatrapati Sambhajiraje, there is a hitch in the deal. “The state government is asking us to hand over the part of our house where we are living. In such a condition, where will we go? The government wants us to go elsewhere and live…We cannot, we have been living here for centuries, the government can’t throw us away from here.”

When asked about the compensation amount offered by the state government, Sardesai said, “Amount is not important, the terms and condition of the agreement will matter.”

Sudhir Bhosale, a follower from Chiplun, said, “The historic wada has been lying neglected for years. It is in such a bad shape that it might collapse to the ground any moment. The government move to build the memorial in Kasba village has been hailed by villagers. However, we have heard that efforts are being made to set up the memorial almost one km away from the Sardesai Wada, which is not acceptable to us. It should be set up at the same spot.”

Historian Shrimant Kokate said, “The demand of villagers and followers of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj is that the memorial should be built at the same spot where the Maratha king was captured. And it is rightly so. It does not make sense to have memorial some distance away from the historical site. It is sad that a movie had to jolt the government out of its stupor. Otherwise, no one cared, no one even thought of preserving and protecting it.

“Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, who was captured on February 1, 1689 by Aurangzeb’s forces, was executed on March 11, 1689. Today is his 336th death anniversay. His Minister Kavi Kalash was also executed the same day.

Kokate said there are several historical evidences which reveal that Muqarrab Khan, the Mughal commander and his forces, had captured Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj after they put up a strong resistance. “I don’t think Sambhaji Maharaj was kept in the wada after his capture. He was immediately taken away by the Mughal forces to Ahilyanagar (earlier Ahmednagar) and then to Tulapur in Pune district where he and his minister Kavi Kalash was brutally and in most inhuman manner done to death,” he said.

Denying that Shirkes had helped Muqarrab Khan in capturing Sambhaji Maharaj, Kokate said, “Why would Shirkes turn against Sambhaji Maharaj when they were close relatives? It is wrong to say Shirkes conspired against the king. Contemporary historical evidences do not support this theory though the movie has depicted it.”

Satish Lingayat, a priest from Kasba village, said, “Sambhaji Maharaj had come to resolve a dispute between Yadav brothers of Karad. He had decided to postpone the decision-making and head for Raigad. However, the Yadav brothers wanted solution to their grievance the same day. So Sambhaji Maharaj stayed back. In the meantime, his agents tipped off Muqarrab Khan, whose forces then launched an attack on the wada and captured the Maratha warrior king.”

Tourism Minister Shambhuraj Desai said a government-appointed committee will inspect the wada and then a decision to purchase the land will be taken. ”If we face difficulty in taking over the land, then we will acquire it through the district collectorate,” he said. The Sardesai family, however, insists that they are ready to hand over the wada on terms which are acceptable to them.