Sultana Begum, who belongs to the family of the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar, on Monday lost her claim for possession of the Red Fort (Lal Quila). Her petition was rejected by a single-judge bench of Justice Rekha Palli for a delay of more than 150 years in approaching the court. Sultana Begum was married to the great-grandson of Bahadur Shah Zafar, Mirza Bedar Bakht, who died in Kolkata in 1980.
“Dismissed on the grounds of inordinate delay,” the court said. In the petition, Sultana claimed her family was deprived of their property by the British East India Company following the First War of Independence in 1857, after which the emperor was exiled and the Red Fort was acquired by the British.
“My history is very weak, but you claim injustice was done to you by the British East India Company in 1857. Why is there a delay of over 150 years? What were you doing for all these years?” Justice Palli asked. She also noted that there was no document to support the claim that the petitioner was related to the last Mughal emperor.
“You have not filed any inheritance chart. Everyone knows Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled by the British, but if his heirs did not file any plea, can she (Sultana) do it?” Justice Palli queried.
Sultana's counsel justified the delay, stating that she was an illiterate person. The court rejected his argument, saying why steps were not taken earlier.
As the court dictated its order, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma remarked that he was grateful that the government had not been deprived of the Red Fort. In any case no private person can stake claim on any national monument as the Red Fort is.
