UP: Postmaster who built 'mini Taj Mahal' for wife, killed
An 83-year-old man, who had made the news and had become a sensation for constructing a 'mini Taj Mahal' in memory of his deceased wife, died of a road accident in Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr late on Thursday night. The man, Faizul Hasan Qadri, breathed his last a hospital in Aligarh where he was rushed to after getting hit by an unidentified vehicle. Here's more.
What we know about the hit-and-run incident
The tragic incident took place when Qadri, a retired postmaster, was out for a walk outside his house in the Kaser Kalan village. The elderly man, who used a walker most of the time, was hit by a speeding vehicle. Qadri's family, who got information about the hit-and-run two hours later, rushed him to a hospital. Qadri succumbed to his injuries the next morning.
Qadri had burst into fame for his symbol of love
The retired postmaster had burst into fame a few years back for constructing a 'mini Taj Mahal' in his wife's memory, and for donating his land for the construction of a girl's school beside the mini monument. Qadri's wife, Tajamulli Begum, passed away in December 2011 due to throat cancer. The couple had been married since 1953, but did not have any children.
Limited finances couldn't stop Qadri from making the monument
Following Tajamulli Begum's demise, Qadri started the construction of the mini monument, inside which he had buried his wife. In 2014, Qadri ran out of money, but vowed to complete the structure from his pension savings. Despite being offered money by Akhilesh Yadav in 2015 to complete the construction, Qadri humbly refused. Instead, he donated his four bighas of land, and asked for the construction of a girl's school, which now stands completed.
Qadri will be laid to rest beside his wife
Yet, the mini Taj Mahal remains incomplete. Prior to his death, Qadri had saved nearly Rs. 2 lakh to buy the necessary marble for the monument. Tragically, he will not be around to see its completion. "The structure is still waiting for the marble. We will now bury him beside his wife's grave inside the same structure. I will try to get the structure completed," said Mohammad Aslam, Qadri's nephew.
