Latest news with #SajidaSultan
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First Post
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- First Post
Saif Ali Khan's Rs 15000 crore property case: How the controversy began and why it may reignite old tensions in Nawab's family
The district court is now going to examine every detail of the case. Nobody from the Pataudi family has commented on the matter yet read more In a massive setback for Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan, the actor recently lost out on properties belonging to the Pataudi family worth Rs 15000 crore as the Madhya Pradesh High Court declared them as 'Enemy Property.' They overturned a 1999 verdict favouring his great-grandmother, Sajida Sultan. As per India's Enemy Property Act, such assets are those left by individuals who migrated to Pakistan post-Partition (1947) or became citizens there—here, due to Sajida's brother moving to Pakistan. The government can now manage or seize them. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD How did it all begin? We have to talk about Nawab Hamidullah Khan, the last ruling Nawab of Bhopal. He had three daughters: Abida Sultan, Sajida Sultan (the great grandmother of Saif Ali Khan, and Rabia Sultan. Under the Bhopal Succession to the Throne Act of 1947, his eldest daughter, Abida, was supposed to inherit his fortunes. But in 1950, Abida moved to Pakistan—ten years before her father passed away. That implied her inheritance could be seized under the Enemy Property Act. And Sajida Sultan was declared the legal successor. It is said (but not confirmed) that her marriage with Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi and his close ties to then-Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru helped secure her claim to the estate. What next in this controversy? The district court is now going to examine every detail of the case. Nobody from the Pataudi family has commented on the matter yet. Will this ruling create a sense of animosity or anger in the family? It also throws light on the legal system in the new and Independent India. What netizens are saying Oh so this property doesn't belong to him anymore? Any udea about that Delhi Pataudi house? Called for a complete retrial is the sessions of fight start again from the beginning? I think with this judgement it will affect the delhi case too unless it belongs to saif lineage. Here the bhopal properties were from inception where saif grandfather had three daughters where one of them shifted to Pakistan so government claimed these. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Yes he won't get any part of all these properties and it will all become government/india's property. Saif's grand aunt chose to move to Pakistan with her husband during partition so her share becomes enemy property. Are these Bhopal properties the only ancestral properties he had? I mean, does he not have any other ones that he can claim?
The Hindu
05-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
M.P. High Court reverses lower court order that granted ownership of ancestral properties to Saif Ali Khan, family
The Madhya Pradesh High Court has set aside a 25-year-old order of a lower court, that had upheld the ownership of actor Saif Ali Khan and his family over properties worth thousands of crores inherited from the erstwhile rulers of Bhopal, ordering a retrial of the matter. In an order dated June 30, a single bench of Justice Sanjay Dwivedi set aside the judgement and decree of the district court in Bhopal, while asking it decide the matter afresh expeditiously, preferably within a year. The matter pertains to a ownership dispute among the descendants of the last ruler of the princely state of Bhopal, Nawab Hamidullah Khan, who had three daughters — Abida Sultan, Sajida Sultan and Rabia Sultan — with his first wife Maimoona Sultan. While Abida migrated to Pakistan, Sajida married Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi. Their son, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, former Indian cricket team captain, married actor Sharmila Tagore. The 2000 order of the trial court had declared the ownership of Ms. Tagore, her son Mr. Ali Khan, and her two daughters Soha Ali Khan and Saba Ali Khan. The order, however, was challenged by Begum Suraiya Rashid, granddaughter of Hamidullah Khan's elder brother Obaidullah Khan, and Rabia Sultan through separate petitions in the High Court. They claimed that after Hamidullah Khan's death in 1960, the properties should have been divided among the petitioners and the defendants — the Pataudi family as per the Muslim Personal Law. They also challenged a 1962 order of the Union Government that recognised Sajida Sultan, who was declared the Nawab of Bhopal after her father's death, as the sole successor of the properties. Justice Dwivedi, however, said that the trial court had dismissed the plaintiff's suits 'without considering the other aspects of the matter' and by relying upon an order of the Allahabad High Court, which as later overruled by the Supreme Court. 'In my opinion, the impugned judgment and decree deserve to be and are hereby set aside. The matters are remanded back to the trial Court for deciding it afresh and if so required, the trial Court can allow the parties to lead further evidence in view of the subsequent development and changed legal position. It is made clear that since the suits were initially filed in the year 1999, therefore, the trial Court shall make all possible efforts to conclude and decide it expeditiously, preferably within a period of one year,' Justice Dwivedi said. The move is seen as a setback to the Pataudi family as the High Court, in December 2024, has already rejected Mr. Ali Khan's 2015 plea challenging a Union Government order declaring the inherited properties worth around ₹15,000 crore as 'enemy property' under the Enemy Property Act. The High Court had asked him to approach an appellate authority, constituted by the government for adjudication of disputes in regard to enemy property, with the matter. However, no appeal was reportedly filed within the given time frame. The assets include various luxury properties such as Bhopal's Flag Staff House, a hotel, a palace and several acres of land in and around Bhopal.
News18
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- News18
Saif Ali Khan Faces Setback As MP High Court Reopens Bhopal Royal Inheritance Case
Last Updated: The court was responding to an appeal by heirs of Nawab Hamidullah Khan who challenged the earlier property distribution In a significant development in the long-standing Bhopal royal family inheritance dispute, the Madhya Pradesh High Court has overturned a 25-year-old ruling by a Bhopal trial court, ordering the case to be heard afresh. The court was responding to an appeal by heirs of Nawab Hamidullah Khan, who challenged the earlier property distribution that favoured Sajida Sultan, the Nawab's daughter from his senior wife and great-grandmother of actor Saif Ali Khan. The original decision had awarded the ancestral estate to Sajida Sultan, but the other heirs have since contested this, arguing that the division should follow Muslim Personal Law. The High Court has now directed the trial court to restart the proceedings from scratch and conclude the hearing within one year. The move could potentially reshape the inheritance structure of the Bhopal royal family, reigniting one of the most high-profile property disputes in recent memory. Court Earlier Dismissed Saif's Petition Actor Saif Ali Khan faces renewed legal trouble after the Madhya Pradesh High Court dismissed his long-standing petition against a government move to classify his family's ancestral properties in Bhopal as 'enemy property." The matter, rooted in a 2014 notice issued by the Custodian of Enemy Property Department, declared the Pataudi family's assets in Bhopal as falling under the Enemy Property Act. Saif had contested the declaration in 2015 and secured a temporary stay from the High Court. However, in a major blow delivered on December 13, 2024, the court lifted the stay, dismissing his challenge. In its recent order, the court gave Saif and his family 30 days to approach the appellate tribunal to reclaim their rights over the property, but no claim has been filed within the stipulated time. With the deadline now expired, the properties are legally eligible for government acquisition, and the Bhopal district administration may initiate the takeover process. What Is Enemy Property? The Enemy Property Act, enacted in 1958 and expanded after the 1965 India-Pakistan war, allows the Indian government to seize assets of individuals who migrated to Pakistan or China and ceased to be Indian citizens. Under this law, 'enemy property" includes land, buildings, and other holdings that once belonged to such individuals. The Pataudi estate is entangled in this legislation due to Saif's great-grandmother, Abida Sultan—daughter of Nawab Hamidullah Khan, the last ruling Nawab of Bhopal—who moved to Pakistan after Partition and renounced her Indian citizenship. Saif Ali Khan is a direct descendant of the Nawab through Abida Sultan's sister, Sajida Sultan. This ongoing dispute, coupled with a fresh court mandate in the separate Bhopal royal inheritance case, adds yet another legal layer to the complex legacy of the Pataudi family.
