Serving as the Eid gah for the city’s Muslims, the Karbala Maidan and the adjacent Makani mosque holds importance in the history of Kollam. It has been known as Karbala, ever since a Muslim Jamindar, the leader of 80 other Muslims in the army, was sent to the gallows after a rebellion alleging religious persecution in the British army. His martyrdom was compared to that of Imam Husayn at Karbala in Iraq.