"Taj Mahal Too?": Supreme Court On 'Give Red Fort' Plea By Mughal's 'Descendant'
New Delhi:
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea to hand over the Red Fort - the 17th century Mughal red sandstone fortress that is one of Delhi's most iconic historical monuments - to the 'widow of the great-grandson of the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar II '.
Faced with a plea from a Sultana Begum, Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna retorted, "Why only Red Fort? Why not Fatehpur Sikri (the capital of the Mughal empire during Akbar's reign in the late 16th century), Taj Mahal (famously commissioned by Shah Jahan in the 17th)?"
"You want to argue this..." a bemused Chief Justice said as he junked the 'misconceived' plea.
Sultana Begum, who lives in Howrah near Kolkata, had demanded possession of the Red Fort on grounds she is a direct descendant of the original owners, i.e., the Mughal emperors.
The Red Fort had been taken away from the Mughals by the British administration after the First War of Independence in 1857, after which Bahadur Shah Zafar II, who had supported the first rebellions against the colonial rulers, was exiled and his lands and properties confiscated.
Alternatively, she demanded financial assistance from the government to give up her claim.
This is not the first time she has made this plea.
In 2021 she approached the Delhi High Court.
Then Sultana Begum had pointed out that in 1960 the government had confirmed the claim of her (now deceased) husband, Bedar Bakht as the descendant and heir of Bahadur Shah Zafar II.
The government subsequently began paying him a pension that transferred to her in 1980, upon his death. This pension, she had argued, was insufficient for her needs.
She alleged the government had taken 'illegal' possession of the Red Fort and its unwillingness to provide adequate compensation - commensurate with its property and historical value - was a direct violation of her fundamental rights and rights under Article 300A of the Constitution, which says no person shall be deprived of their lawful property, except by the authority of law.
However, this plea was junked by the Delhi High Court.
Three years later she appealed against that verdict, and it was rejected again.
It was rejected on grounds that the appeal was filed too late after the original verdict, overruling Sultana Begum's plea; she had said her illiteracy and ill health had led to the delays.
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