Kotla Mohsin Khan was constructed in the mid 16th century in the old city of Peshawar, and today consists of two domed tombs and the famous majestic gateway, it was also the residence of Mazullah Khan, seventeenth century Pashto poet.

The last Mughal governor, Nawab Nasir Khan welcomed the Afghan King, Mohammed Nadir Shah

Mohammed Nadir Shah

Mohammed Nadir Shah was King of Afghanistan from 15 October 1929 until his assassination in 1933. Previously, he served as Minister of War, Afghan Ambassador to France, and as a general in the military of Afghanistan...

 and gifted him the key to Peshawar in 1741 when he visited the city. This signaled the end of the Mughal Empire

Mughal Empire

The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 in Peshawar

Peshawar

Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....

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According to an earlier legend, the foundation of the gate was laid down in the latter half of the 16th century in the presence of renowned personalities of the time, Sheikh Kaka Sahib and Akhund Derwaza Baba.

It is also recorded that Arbab Mustajab Khan, being the representative of the Mughals, settled disputes amongst the Ghori Khel tribes in the balconies of the building. When the Mughals arrested Khushal Khan Khattak

Khushal Khan Khattak

Khushal Khan Khattak was a prominent Pashtun malik, poet, warrior,A charismatic personality and tribal chief of the Khattak tribe. He wrote a huge collection of Pashto poems during the Mughal Empire in the 17th century, and admonished Pashtuns to forsake their divisive tendencies and unite...

, Arbab Mustajab Khan, secured his release from the dungeon, through his personal efforts and kept him as a guest in the castle. On the orders of the ruler of Peshawar, when Khushal Khan Khattak was sent to Delhi

Delhi

Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...

, Mustajab Khan also accompanied his friend. This verse by Khushal Khan Khattak says:

I was accompanied on my journey

To Hind by Mustajab,

Being a Khan, a Malik and an Arbab

The original name of this site was Kotla Mustajab Khan. It was renamed as Kotla Mohsin Khan due to the owner's close relationship with Mustajab Khan during the reign of Afghan King, Ahmad Shah Durrani

Ahmad Shah Durrani

Ahmad Shah Durrani , also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī and born as Ahmad Khān, was the founder of the Durrani Empire in 1747 and is regarded by many to be the founder of the modern state of Afghanistan.Ahmad Khan enlisted as a young soldier in the military of the Afsharid kingdom and quickly rose...

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During the siege of Peshawar in 1830s, the Sikhs also burnt this site and it was later refurbished. The gate and minarets of Kotla Mohsin Khan are historical landmarks of the 16th and 17th century "Roshnai period". Bayazid Ansari alias Pir Rokhan started his religious and political movement against the Mughal emperor Akbar from this site. Allah Dad Doshani alias Rashid Khan constructed minarets at this site to conduct judicial duties.