The arrest was made in connection with the execution of court decisions on claims of the Ural Charitable Foundation against the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus. In 2016 and 2017, the fund began legal proceedings against the Muslim Spiritual Directorate, for which it recovered about 65 million rubles.
As reported "Kommersant-Ufa" with reference to the manager of the DUM of the Republic of Belarus, the bailiffs seized all management accounts, including salary accounts, as well as all property - buildings, transport and equipment.
The conflict situation has been going on since 2013, when Ural became the sole sponsor of the construction of the new cathedral mosque “Ar-Rahim”, allocating 1 billion rubles for this purpose. But in 2016, the management of the fund demanded to reduce the costs of finishing the building - in particular, to replace Italian marble, which had become extremely expensive after the appreciation of the currency, with cheaper domestic ones. However, the Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus rejected this proposal.
In addition, the fund demanded that the affiliation be eliminated between the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus, which essentially acts as the customer for the construction, and the contractor - the Altyn Kurai company, whose owners are Mufti Nurmukhamet Nigmatullin, his deputy Ayup Bibarsov and the head of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate Ildar Isheev.
As a result, the donation agreement was terminated through the court and the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus was obliged to return the funds spent on renting the area around the mosque and also creating infrastructure.
The fund stated that they were afraid of the withdrawal of the defendant’s assets, because by that time the Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus had already managed to re-register ownership of some real estate to its subsidiary. At the same time, the Arbitration Court of Bashkortostan prohibited the alienation of rights and obligations under the lease agreement for a plot next to the mosque.
The Ar-Rahim Cathedral Mosque is a building that has been under construction for several years in Ufa. The mosque was founded as part of the celebration of the 450th anniversary of the entry of Bashkiria into Russia.
For many years, Muslim leaders of the republic have appealed to the state authorities of Bashkortostan about the construction of a new mosque in the capital of the region. They argued that existing mosques cannot accommodate everyone on days that are sacred to this belief.
The authorities of the republic agreed with the existence of this problem and allocated a land plot for future construction in the central part of Ufa, and a general contractor was also identified. Construction started in 2007. It was then that the first stone was laid.
It was planned that no budget funds would be used during construction, and all work carried out would be carried out at the expense of donations.
The height of the building's minarets reaches 74 meters. Thus making the mosque the tallest in the Russian Federation.
"Ar-Rahim" is built according to the traditional style for Islam, but with local inclusions. Externally, the mosque resembles a khan’s tent; the dome’s texture is very similar to a honeycomb. It is built using all modern technologies. For example, it has a heating system that helps get rid of the snow cover that forms on the dome. It also has fire-resistant properties. It can remain flame resistant for forty minutes.
Handwork was of great importance in the construction of the mosque. Almost all the design was created by human hands without the use of additional equipment. The marble for the mosque was specially brought from Greece (Taos Island), since only it had the required level of whiteness.
It was initially assumed that in 2017 the mosque would open its doors to Muslims. But the plans were not destined to come true, since 2009 was marked by a terrible scandal. The theft of funds that were donated by individuals and legal entities was revealed.
To continue the construction of the mosque three years later, a special fund was created that could control the construction work. In 2013, the Ural charitable foundation decided to complete the construction of the facility on its own. In short, several years ago this foundation also came up with a proposal to participate in the construction of a mosque, but the foundation’s wishes were ignored.
The mosque, together with the objects being built nearby, is located on an area of 20 hectares. The cost of infrastructure is 5 billion rubles.
The relic of the cathedral mosque should be a hair from the beard of the prophet, which is kept in Russia. There are only two such hairs in our country.
Muslim City
According to the plan, Ar-Rahim will become a key building in the Muslim City business complex under construction. The mosque will have six floors: four on the ground and two underground. It is expected that there will be spacious prayer halls, an Islamic museum, a cafe with halal food and various religious facilities.
The Muslim City project involves a large number of office premises, retail establishments, and catering outlets that will function in accordance with the canons of Islam.
A park with several fountains is also planned. An alley that will be laid from the mosque towards the Intercession Church; it will symbolize the unity of people of different faiths living on the territory of the Republic of Bashkortostan.
“Ar-Rahim” will become the center for the development of the Islamic faith throughout the country, becoming a communication platform. You can see the unfinished monumental building at the entrance to the city. On a sunny day, the domes sparkle beautifully with golden reflections. It's impossible not to see.
Address: Ufa, 588th block
From time to time, the information space of Bashkiria is shaken by news surrounding the cathedral mosque under construction and the adjacent block on Salavat Yulaev Avenue in Ufa. For almost 10 years now, the townspeople cannot wait for the mosque - one of the largest in Europe - to open its doors to believers. The place that is supposed to be made spiritually pure is shrouded in anything but pure deeds.
How it all began
In 2007, Bashkiria solemnly celebrated the 450th anniversary of its voluntary entry into the Russian state. The republic prepared thoroughly for this important event. Several years before the date of the celebration, regional authorities announced megaprojects that were supposed to significantly change the face of the capital of the republic. They were allocated 22 billion rubles. Thus, the list of grandiose construction projects in Ufa included the House of Friendship of Peoples (which at the time of its opening became the Congress Hall), the Ufa Arena ice palace, the Akbuzat hippodrome, and a new air terminal. The reconstruction of the railway station began. Salavat Yulaev Avenue was laid across the entire city, and new interchanges appeared. A year before the significant date, the first stone was laid in the foundation of the future cathedral mosque. Residents of Ufa had no doubt that this project would be implemented, since other facilities were being built quite quickly. In addition, the magnificent Kul-Sharif mosque opened in Kazan, and the spirit of rivalry with Tatarstan was stronger than ever in those years. And it was necessary to build something more pretentious than that of our sworn neighbors.
Stories about large construction projects appeared on Bashkir television, and videos about them were played in minibuses. Among the memorable shots is a plane flying over the dome of the future mosque. Beauty!
Times for Russia, especially for such an oil region as Bashkortostan, were, perhaps, golden. A barrel of black gold was over $100. The oil companies of Bashkiria were taken over by the Rakhimov clan. In general, it seemed that money was flowing into the republic like a river.
However, a year after the celebration, part of the Congress Hall was closed for lengthy repairs. Shortcomings were also revealed in the ice palace. There were problems with heating in the international terminal of the Ufa airport. And the reconstruction of the railway station was completed only this year.
As for the mosque, charitable funds from large industrial enterprises were attracted for its construction (UMMC-Holding, Ufaorgsintez, Bashkirenergo, Bashkirnefteprodukt, Ufaneftekhim, Novoil, Ufa Oil Refinery, Bashneft, Bank "Uralsib") districts and cities of Bashkiria. And at the initial stage they were able to collect almost 300 million rubles. Construction was expected to be completed in three years (from 2009 to 2010).
The regional leadership appointed the company as the customer-developer of the cathedral mosque "Zhilstroykomplektsnab"(LLC PKF "ZhSKS"). All monetary donations were accumulated in the accounts of this company. The Ufa mayor's office allocated a plot of land of 2.3 hectares for construction.
The Cathedral Mosque was conceived as one of the largest religious architectural complexes in Russia with an area of 14 thousand square meters. This was to be the largest heated mosque in Europe. In shape it should represent the khan's tent, surrounded by four minarets. Half of the complex should be occupied by the mosque itself with two prayer halls for a total of 2 thousand people. It was planned to house a madrasah for 2 thousand students, a conference hall, a museum of Islam and a library in the building. Subsequently, it is planned to open a floor for tourists in the mosque, where there will be a museum, a television and radio studio, and exhibition centers. From here you will be able to access open viewing platforms that will allow guests to see the city from all sides. Observation areas were also designed on two minarets.
The choice of the muftiate. Salavat Yulaev vs. "Al-Murtaza"
At the same time, two competing muftiates of Bashkiria - the Central Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Russia and the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Republic of Bashkortostan - began to divide the skin of the unkilled bear. After all, the significance of the religious center for the regional elite depended on whose jurisdiction the magnificent religious building at the entrance to Ufa would be located. In a dispute over the future mosque, the leaders of the two muftiates began to come up with names for it.
Nurmuhammed hazrat Nigmatullin. Photo source: islamrb.ru
Thus, the chairman of the Muslim Spiritual Board of the Republic of Belarus, Mufti Nurmukhamet Nigmatullin proposed to name it after Salavat Yulaev, a national Bashkir hero. It should be noted that almost everyone in the republic was named after Emelyan Pugachev’s associate. For example, back in the Soviet years, the Salavat district and the city of Salavat appeared on the map of the BASSR, and in different parts of the region. Many sports fans probably also know about the Ufa hockey club. In addition, performances were staged about Yulaev, poems, paintings, and scientific works were dedicated to him. And the appearance of a mosque in honor of the commander (as well as a poet, musician, improviser and simply an outstanding person) on the avenue of the same name would fit well into the trend. In addition, since the late 90s they began to talk almost seriously about the fact that Salavat is also a saint (avliya) and a martyr for the faith, who declared jihad against royal tyranny. Despite the certain absurdity of such a name, for some such a name seemed quite organic.
At the same time, the head of the Central Spiritual Directorate of Russia Talgat Tajuddin proposed his original name - “Sultan Muhammad al-Murtaza”, explaining: “After all, Murtaza is one of the names of the Prophet Muhammad.” By the way, one of the meanings of the name Murtaza is “chosen one.” The presidential administration was very wary of such an initiative by Sheikh-ul-Islam. They emphasized that this name is inappropriate and will cause the population to associate not with the Messenger of Allah, but with the President Murtaza Rakhimov; The leader of the republic himself does not engage in narcissism. At the same time, Tajuddin promised to donate a relic to the future temple - a piece of hair from the prophet’s beard (which he later transferred to Bolgar).
Talgat Hazrat Tajuddin. Photo source: cdum.ru
Looking ahead (so as not to return to the question of the name), we note that ultimately the third option was chosen - "Ar-Rahim" ("The Merciful"), which again sometimes becomes the subject of ironic remarks addressed to the first president of the republic.
And of the two religious organizations, the government of the republic chose the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus, which was much easier to influence. By the way, Nurmukhamet Hazrat is still considered a protege of Murtaza Rakhimov. In addition, Tadzhuddin, in fact, already had two main mosques of the republic - the First Cathedral (known as “Tukaevskaya”) and “Lala-Tulpan”.
Houston, we have problems.
However, time passed. Anniversaries were celebrated, but construction progressed extremely slowly. In 2008 the company "UMMC-Holding" demanded an audit of the financial and economic activities of the developer and general contractor (LLC PKF "ZhSKS"). It turned out that the bulk of the allocated money was spent for an inappropriate purpose - for the construction of a storm drain. The other part of the funds was simply stolen. Other blatant violations were also discovered: the organization made additions to its work, the cost of which was also inflated; The tax authorities had their own questions. As a result, Zhilstroykomplektsnab was removed from the construction of the religious building.
Photo source: islamrb.ru
The project of the mosque and the surrounding area itself was criticized by expert architects from Moscow. Suddenly it turned out that the objects being built on the site would overshadow the nearby Church of the Intercession, which for some reason the designers had not previously noticed. In the end, the development plan for the territory needed to be revised taking into account the opinion of the Ufa Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church (later the Bashkortostan Metropolis).
The year 2009 has arrived. The Bashkir oil industry became the property of AFK Sistema. Funds from the sale of the Bashkir fuel and energy complex went to various accounts, which were subsequently accumulated in the Ural charitable foundation. The new company, together with the Target Program Fund of the Republic of Bashkortostan, allocated 150 million rubles. Construction was entrusted Republican Department of Capital Construction(KP RB “RUKS”). However, things didn’t work out here either. The new developer could not find a common language with the Spiritual Directorate of Management of the Republic of Belarus, which, in turn, was not satisfied with the company’s conditions. In general, construction has stalled again.
In 2010, the government changed in the republic. Rakhimov was replaced by Rustem Khamitov, who almost from the first days began to criticize the regime of his predecessor. Among the many promises of the new president was that he would deal with thefts and ensure that construction continued. But no one wanted to give money to restore it. Because it is not clear where the funds are flowing, and the financing schemes, and especially the “development” schemes, seemed very murky to many. In the same year, the chairman of the Council for State-Interfaith Relations under the President of the Republic of Belarus, Vyacheslav Pyatkov, said on Bashkir television that the long-term construction would be completed in three years (in 2013).
Murtaza Rakhimov. Photo source: zampolit.com
At the same time, ex-president of the Republic of Belarus Murataza Rakhimov, who at that time headed the Ural Foundation, offered his services to the regional government, but on its terms:
“There are no intermediaries, we only give money directly and maintain strict control over how it is spent.”Initially, they say, Khamitov refused. But the pressure on the president was growing. In 2012, the head of the Council of Muftis of Russia, Ravil Gainutdin, arrived in Ufa and met with the president. Khamitov assured the mufti from Moscow that the construction of the temple would be completed in 2015 in time for the SCO and BRICS summits. By the way, regional media did not write about this event (except for one), and it was not reflected on the website of the head of the republic. As time has shown, for good reason. Khamitov’s assurances turned out to be just more promises.
As a result, the Ural Foundation and the republican authorities were able to agree by 2013. Pyatkov, repeating the words of his boss, has now shifted the deadlines he had previously announced: “The Republic will complete construction by the SCO summit” (i.e., by the summer of 2015).
The customer for the construction of the mosque has changed - instead of the Communist Party of the Republic of Belarus "RUKS", it became the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Republic of Belarus. The developer was a certain company with a beautiful name Altyn Kurai LLC. The founders of the company are the manager of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus Ildar Isheev (50%), chairman Nurmukhamet Nigmatullin (25%) and his first deputy Ayup Bibarsov (25%). Please note that, in fact, the same persons acted as both the customer and the contractor. It turns out that money from the charitable foundation goes to the construction through the office, which was organized by functionaries of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus. Despite the fact that the spiritual administration insisted on expanding the building area, the project was left the same.
The equipment on the site hummed again, the builders, like ants, subordinate to a common mind, were painstakingly doing their work. The mosque grew before our eyes. The Ural Foundation, through affiliated media (the Bonus newspaper, the ProUfu.ru website), reported on each stage: the minarets were erected, the dome was raised, crescents were installed, finishing began. In the meantime, the leadership of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus invited journalists to the site, told how wonderful the construction was going, and shared grandiose plans. By the way, it has now been announced that the mosque will be completed by 2017, when the 100th anniversary of the Bashkir Muftiate will be celebrated. Some religious rituals, such as Kurban, holiday prayers, etc., began to be held here.
Muslim City and Mufti's Farman
In the same 2013, a reporting and election conference was held in the Spiritual Administration, during which Nurmukhamet Nigmatullin was re-elected for a new term. In his “pre-election” speech, the mufti spoke about the grandiose program - microdistrict "Muslim City", which will be built together with the mosque.
Goals of Muslim City
This should be a social and business center, the income from which should go to maintaining the infrastructure of the Muslim religious building. The plan involves some combination of the mosque under construction and the Orthodox church into a single ensemble. The project envisages the construction of a multi-height residential complex (4–15 floors) for 514 apartments with built-in commercial real estate and underground parking, a kindergarten, a green area with fountains, hotels on 3–17 floors with parking and a conference room for 1000 near the “House of Allah”. places In the block, which will later be given the number 588, a two-story halal cafe is planned. A specially laid alley should connect the mosque with the Intercession Church. The territory was declared “haram-free,” i.e., it would not be possible to sell alcohol or conduct any activities prohibited by Sharia law. The volume of investments was estimated at 3–5 billion rubles.
“Such a complex will contribute to the development of the halal industry, become a source of economic and social growth of the Bashkir capital, and additional jobs will be created,” said Nurmukhamet Hazrat.
Subsequently, the word “Muslim” in the name caused bewilderment among a number of Orthodox social activists, they say that the city is multi-confessional. And for some time a new name for the territory began to appear - “Ufa City”. During public hearings that took place later, the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus encountered serious criticism from Orthodox activists. This was another call, which we will return to a little later. Despite the fact that the development project, according to the muftiate’s functionaries, should symbolize peace, friendship and promote traditional Islam, such arguments did not satisfy opponents. They considered that the Orthodox church would be visually compressed and thereby “humiliated.” Local historians and arch-defenders also expressed their claims. The Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus promised to take into account the opinion of the Orthodox and other dissatisfied people and adjust the plan.
At the beginning of 2015, the Ural Fund faced a problem. His wallet became noticeably lighter, since AFK Sistema filed a complaint and, through arbitration, recovered more than 70 billion rubles from its subsidiary Ural-Invest LLC. Then the management of the foundation stated that it would not be able to finance all the charitable programs that it previously supported (for example, the Salavat Yulaev hockey club). Fears arose that construction of the mosque and the adjacent quarter would again be suspended. Rustem Khamitov, now in the status of head of the republic (the position of president has been abolished since 2015), promised that he would find sponsors for all the projects started, including the cathedral mosque.
At the same time, the muftiate issued a “farman” (decree), which prescribed “on the occasion of the birthday of the first President of the Republic of Bashkortostan, Murtaza Gubaidulovich Rakhimov, during Friday prayers, read the Holy Quran and pray for the health of the head of the Ural charitable foundation, asking Allah Almighty for long happy years of life, good health and the implementation of all assigned tasks in the name of prosperity of our native Bashkortostan". In addition, the clergy of the republic must “read a prayer for the successful activities of the Ural charitable foundation in the construction of the Republican Cathedral Mosque complex on Salavat Yulaev Avenue in Ufa and in all areas of charitable activities in the Republic of Bashkortostan”.
Either the prayers of the Bashkir imams were heard by the Almighty, or Rakhimov decided to complete the work he had begun, or some other reason prompted him, but the foundation continued to finance the construction. In addition, a settlement agreement was concluded between the Ural-Invest and Sistema companies, according to which part of the money should be returned to the Ural Foundation for the implementation of charitable purposes. Workers began cladding the building and began installing communications. It became possible to see the mosque itself even at night: beautiful lighting was installed on it.
During the SCO and BRICS summits, foreign delegations were brought to the construction site and told them about the future grandiose temple and interfaith harmony. And everyone was assured that there was very little left, and the mosque would open its doors in just a couple of years. And there will be a small piece of Dubai around.
Project of a Muslim complex in Ufa. Photo source: dumrb.ru
Found a scythe on a marble stone
But something went wrong again. The “Muslim City” project, which was quietly returned to its previous name, received a surge in the media and the blogosphere. The public hearings held in May 2016 were just the tip of the iceberg.
In June, a benefactor suddenly expressed his complaints about the spiritual administration. The fund suddenly began to doubt that the money was being spent for its intended purpose. In addition, to his surprise, the sponsor discovered the affiliation of the Muslim Spiritual Board of the Republic of Belarus and Altyn Kurai, i.e. customer and contractor. The Ural Foundation saw this as a conflict of interest. Murtaza Rakhimov’s organization was outraged that expensive Greek marble was used for cladding instead of domestic ones. And funding for construction stopped again.
Photo source: bfural.rf
As the political scientist noted Abbas Gallyamov, the management of the fund probably noticed these shortcomings before, but tried to come to an agreement with the violators in their own way. “It is obvious that most of our religious leaders have a business sense. And it is likely that they felt that this was the happiest moment when the opportunity arose to realize themselves as businessmen. But Rakhimov, understandably, didn’t like it: the money came from his fund.”,” Gallyamov emphasized.
The Muftiate cautiously announced that they would be able to find another investor if Rakhimov continued to put pressure. Gallyamov suggested that ANK Bashneft could theoretically become a philanthropist if the company curtails other social projects. At the same time, many considered the statement of the Muslim clergy a bluff and expressed doubt that a sponsor would be found.
Mufti of Bashkiria. Photo source: dumrb.ru
The spiritual administration was presented with three conditions from Ural: replace expensive imported marble with a domestic analogue; terminate the contract between the muftiate and Altyn Kurai LLC; top managers of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus must give up their shares in the contractor company. And the CEO of the company should not be an official of a religious organization. If the requirements are met, the infusion of money will continue.
In August, the Metropolitan of Ufa also became involved Nikon (Vasyukov), who had previously remained silent (or supported the project, as the RB DUM has repeatedly assured). The dignitary of the Russian Orthodox Church burst out with righteous anger because of the construction that had begun: in his opinion, the development of the territory along the path proposed by the Spiritual Directorate of Muslims of the Republic of Belarus is ill-conceived. And the name “Muslim City,” according to him, can provoke interfaith conflict. The bishop wrote his claims, somewhat reminiscent of threats, to the mayor of Ufa, Irek Yalalov, so that he would understand the situation.
After this, the administration of the Bashkir capital rejected the development project for the quarter. City officials, in particular, were not satisfied with the name “Muslim City,” which the muftiate should have abandoned earlier, because there is a church on this territory. The Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus backed down, and “by mutual agreement of the leaders of traditional faiths,” the microdistrict became the “Interfaith Quarter of Peace and Harmony.”
Meanwhile, the Ural Foundation went to court with a demand to recover 64.5 million rubles spent “inappropriately” from the Spiritual Administration of the Republic of Belarus. The spiritual administration, which for a long time did not comment on its disagreement with the sponsor, stated that “issues regarding the replacement of facing marble and the change of the general contractor were artificially inspired to provoke a conflict with subsequent widespread media coverage”. The muftiate also suggested that in this way the fund was preparing the ground for Rakhimov to loudly announce the cessation of funding.
Rustem Khamitov. Photo source: Kommersant
Rustem Khamitov, in an interview that took place on the eve of the Duma elections, said that he would make “maximum efforts to ensure that the mosque is completed.” The elections passed, and Murtaza Rakhimov made an unexpected political move: publicly (through the foundation’s website) he asked his successor to intervene and together complete the construction of the mosque, in which 1.5 billion rubles had already been invested. The head of the republic replied that he would not interfere in the situation, since “the possibilities of the Ural Fund to solve problems have not been exhausted.”
The meeting of the Arbitration Court has not yet taken place, and the fate of the mosque, and even more so the quarter, is still unknown. Each party (the Ural Foundation, the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of the Republic of Belarus, the Government of the Republic of Belarus) is concerned, first of all, with its own utilitarian interests. Although everyone loudly declares support for the Ummah, the prestige of the republic, etc., there is no confidence that they are all really interested in the development of Islam. For some, the elections are over and you can forget about your promises. Here, as they say, lords fight... By the way, Bashkiria will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2019. Will the Muslim complex be operational at least by this date? The question remains open.
Photo source: bfural.rf
Timur Rakhmatullin
This is how the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Republic commented on the situation around the construction. But this is not the only unfinished temple.
Instead of the long-awaited azan, today you can only hear the howling of the wind on the territory of the unfinished mosque. Watchman Anatoly Zemlyakov is the only one who works here: he walks around the territory, strengthens fences and feeds dogs. You can’t live without them at an abandoned construction site.
Construction of the cathedral mosque in Ufa began in 2007. Made in the form of a khan's tent, with a gilded dome and minarets in the form of spearheads, it will become one of the most beautiful in the country, the chairman of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Republic, Nurmukhamat Hazrat, is sure. In addition to the prayer hall, 12 thousand square meters will house a museum, library, and school of education.
Now we are on the roof of the largest mosque in the republic under construction. The height of its minarets is 77 meters. There is also a special tourist balcony here. It is from this point that the Intercession Church of Ufa is clearly visible. According to the project, an interfaith alley was to be laid out from the mosque to the Orthodox church. But for now these grandiose plans remain just that.
Two years ago, construction of the mosque was stopped. Various reasons were given. According to Rishat Zainagabdinov, the project sponsor encountered financial difficulties and turned to the customer with a request to reduce construction costs and eliminate affiliation. But the appeal remained unheeded. Afterwards, funding for the project ceased.
The customer-developer assures that construction is delayed due to the unresolved land issue. Back in 2013, when the Spiritual Administration of Muslims accepted the facility, an examination showed that the previously built structure would not withstand the load of the minarets. They began to build a stylobate 30 meters wide. But gradually the area of the mosque went beyond the boundaries of the site.
The project for planning and surveying the block, say representatives of the developer, which was prepared in 2016, was ultimately not approved by the city administration. According to our sources, today the land issue rests on the finalization of this project. The administration itself gives extremely restrained comments, noting only that today an agreement has been reached with the customer of the facility on a joint solution to the issue.
Meanwhile, residents of the private sector, which were approached by construction, also became hostages of the long-term construction.
The mosque that greets everyone entering Ufa today is not the only unfinished temple in the city.
Prayers in the Resurrection Cathedral are heard in spite of all circumstances. Seven years ago, when it became clear that the church under construction had become a long-term construction project, one of the small areas of the temple was converted for worship.
Construction of a new Orthodox church on Komsomolskaya Street began in 2003. It was supposed to become an exact copy of the Resurrection Cathedral, which has not survived to this day, on the site of the current Bashdrama Theater. The construction was frozen due to lack of funding. Hope, says the rector of the temple, appeared when a special fund was created in the city last fall.
The parishioners of the temple have been waiting for more than 15 years now. They themselves admit that, whenever possible, they participate in fundraising. However, it is obvious that such large-scale objects, which should have taken their rightful place on the map of the republic’s attractions, cannot be completed by the efforts of believers alone.
For many years, the center of Ufa had its own Sagrada De Familia. The unfinished mosque on Salavat Yulaev Avenue raised questions among tourists and bewilderment among local residents. How come they started building and can’t finish? And now, it seems, her fate is sealed. The largest mosque in Russia will still appear in the capital of Bashkiria.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE CENTURY
The first construction project appeared back in 2006. The initiator was the first president of Bashkiria Murtaza Rakhimov. It was assumed that the temple would be truly gigantic in size - a dome 46 meters high and four minarets 74 meters each. The total area of the mosque building itself was supposed to be about 12 thousand square meters.
In addition, representatives of the religious denomination intended to build an entire city around the mosque - the so-called “Interfaith Center for Peace and Harmony” with shops, hotels, the necessary infrastructure for guests and an alley. The ideal location for construction was chosen - at the southern entrance to the city. However, even after 11 years, the completed beautiful mosque was still unable to meet travelers.
The construction of the facility was frozen several times. Moreover, this happened for completely objective reasons. From the very beginning, funding for the project came from extra-budgetary sources - in simple terms, money was given to the builders by concerned residents. It is logical that the lion's share of funds came from business representatives. It is logical that over time, patrons became interested in how exactly the funds were spent, which by 2008 had collected about 300 million. According to the results of an audit by the Chamber of Control and Accounts, it turned out that almost half of the funds were spent on landscaping the territory beyond the boundaries marked for construction. Then the construction was frozen for the first time.
In 2013, the first President of Bashkiria, Murtaza Rakhimov, decided to take up the matter. Then representatives of the political elite said that the Ural charitable foundation was ready to provide support. According to the foundation, over two years they donated about 1.5 billion rubles for construction.
In 2015, the Ural charitable foundation was forced to suspend funding due to disagreements. It is noteworthy that the republic’s authorities secretly supported the construction of the mosque, but the region did not provide sufficient financial assistance.
NEW HOPE
In 2017, Sergei Veremeenko suddenly appeared in Ufa. The oligarch, who was participating in the race for the presidency of the republic, very clearly hinted that he wanted to sponsor the construction of the mosque. For this purpose, the philanthropist even created a special fund “Imen Kala”. But for some reason the matter did not go beyond legal red tape.
At the end of 2018, there was another twist in the long story. This time, the Ural Charitable Foundation started talking about resuming funding for the construction project.
Now, with the assistance of the acting head of Bashkiria, Radiy Khabirov, the continuation of the construction of the Ar-Rahim mosque in Ufa is being considered. The board of the charitable foundation decided to resume support for construction. We will begin allocating funds in November 2018,” the organization reported.
It remains unknown what could have forced the fund's management to change its financial policy so dramatically. It is likely that the return of Radiy Khaibrova to the republic played a role. On his first working day, the acting head of Bashkortostan held a meeting with Murtaza Rakhimov, at which he promised to complete the construction of the Ar-Rakhim mosque.
It is curious that due to the new conditions, patrons of the arts “will radically reduce funding for other areas of the charitable foundation’s work - healthcare, education, social and others.”