Extracts from K.M. Munshi's Diary: The Appalling Decadence of Nizam Mir Osman Ali

This is the first part of an eye-opening historical series drawn from K.M. Munshi's experiences in the Nizam-ruled erstwhile Princely State of Hyderabad.

Preface

ON DECEMBER 25, 1947, KANHAIYALAL MANIKLAL MUNSHI was appointed the Agent-General in charge of overseeing and resolving the deadlock caused by Nizam VII, Mir Osman Ali of Hyderabad who had stubbornly refused to integrate his state with India. Five days earlier, over tea, Sardar Patel had told him: “Hyderabad is a cancer in the belly of India. Mun…