The Ghostly Whispers of Kolkata Dockyard by Wajid Ali Shah

The ghost of the last Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Awadh is said to be haunting the Kolkata Dockyard. After being betrayed and left by the British he is waiting for the chance of retribution as he is waiting for his ship that never came.

The Kolkata Dock, also known as Kidderpore Dock, is a historic maritime facility located along the banks of the Hooghly River in Kolkata, India. This bustling dockyard has played a pivotal role in the city’s maritime trade and industrial history. The dock spans a significant stretch of the riverfront, characterized by its extensive network of piers, quays, and warehouses.

The Kolkata Dock is also home to a labyrinth of narrow alleyways, bustling marketplaces, and vibrant waterfront promenades. Here, sailors, traders, and dockworkers once mingled amidst the hustle and bustle of daily life, their voices blending with the sounds of creaking ships and lapping waves.

Read more: Check out all of the ghost stories from India

Today, while much of the Kolkata Dock remains active, parts of it have fallen into disuse and decay, lending an air of nostalgia and melancholy to its surroundings. Abandoned warehouses and crumbling piers stand as reminders of a bygone era.

Kolkata Dockyard is also said to be haunted by a very particular ghost.

The Deposed King Haunting Kolkata Dockyard

The haunted rumors surrounding the dock have a surprisingly royal host. The Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Awadh was the 11th and last king there. The Kingdom had long been protected by the East Indian Company after the British took over India, before they turned and annexed the kingdom in 1856.

The ghost of the last Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Awadh is said to be haunting the Kolkata Dockyard. After being betrayed and left by the British he is waiting for the chance of retribution as he is waiting for his ship that never came. — **Wajid Ali Shah:** The deposed King, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Awadh is thought to be the one haunting the Kolkata Dockyard.

Wajid Ali Shah (واجد علی شاه) came after relinquishing his throne and Kingdom and wanted to get to London. He was hoping the British would give him refuge and live in comfort for the rest of his days. Arriving at Bichali Ghat not far from Kiddipore by steamboat, little did he know, he would not get any further.

He wanted to plead his case to Queen Victoria, as he believed in the British justice system. Instead, he was imprisoned at Fort William by them during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 as they believed he could be a rallying figure for the sepoys.

The government had left him there on the banks of the Hooghly river with houses and he spent the rest of his life in Kolkata, building the dock. Heartbroken that he would never return to his beloved homestead in Lucknow.

Many sources claim that Wajid Ali Shah was the one building the dock and that is the reason why he is haunting it to this day. How much involvement the former king really had with the dock is uncertain, although we know he did spend a lot of money on building throughout his exile in Kolkata, although mostly lavish homes for himself in Garden Reach close to the river banks of the Hooghly River west of Kidderpore.

In fact, Kolkata Dockyard has existed in some form of capacity since the early 16th century when the Portuguese came to Bengal. It was a rather small port until the British East India Company made it to a major center of maritime trade. The wet dock in Kidderpore was put up in 1892 after the merchants in Kolkata demanded it.

The Ghost of the Nawab Wajid Ali Shah

Now, centuries later, whispers of the Nawab’s restless spirit haunt the Kolkata Dockyard, his spectral form said to wander the shadows in search of vengeance over the British who betrayed him.

It is said that the Nawab’s ghostly apparition roams Kolkata Dockyard, still bitter of how the British treated him. Witnesses report seeing shadows darting among the abandoned warehouses and decaying piers. The Nawab was fond of Hindustani classical music and dock workers believe haunting notes of music can be heard in the area.

According to the stories, there are also the ghosts of soldiers and sailors who died at the Kolkata Dockyard as well, waiting with him in the afterlife.