In a significant ruling, the Madhya Pradesh High Court lifted the stay on the Pataudi family’s lavish historical properties worth an estimated rupees 15,000 crore. The court ruling brought the government one step closer to the potential acquisition of properties under the Enemy Property Act of 1968.
Back in 2014, the Custodian of Enemy Property Department reportedly issued a notice declaring the properties in question as "enemy property." The dispute further intensified after the Central government's 2016 ordinance stating that heirs would have no rights over such properties.
The historical properties are linked to the family of Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan. The main properties facing legal scrutiny reportedly include the Flag Staff House, where Saif Ali Khan spent his childhood, along with Noor-Us-Sabah Palace, Dar-Us-Salam, Bungalow of Habibi, Ahmedabad Palace, Kohefiza Property, and others.
What did the court say?
The Madhya Pradesh High Court directed actor Saif Ali Khan, the heir of the properties in Bhopal, to approach the appellate authority following the declaration of the historical properties of the Pataudi family as enemy property.
Justice Vivek Agarwal said a statutory remedy exists under the amended Enemy Property Act, 2017, and directed the parties concerned to file a representation within 30 days.
"If a representation is filed within 30 days from today, the appellate authority shall not advert to the aspect of limitation and shall deal with the appeal on its own merits," the court said.
Although the Pataudi family still has legal avenues open to explore, the complexity of the situation has left a question mark on the fate of these properties.
Enemy Property Act and the dispute
As per the provisions of the Enemy Property Act, the central government is allowed to claim properties owned by individuals who migrated to Pakistan post-Partition.
A historical link makes the law applicable to the aforementioned case. Bhopal's last Nawab, Hamidullah Khan, had three daughters. While his eldest daughter Abida Sultan migrated to Pakistan in 1950, his second daughter, Sajida Sultan, stayed back in India. Sajida married Nawab Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi and therefore became the legal heir of the historic Pataudi properties. Later, Sajida's grandson, Saif Ali Khan, inherited a share of the properties.
Even though Saif Ali Khan is Sajida's grandson, the government capitalised on Abida Sultan's migration to Pakistan which brought the properties under the ambit of 'enemy property'. Although the court recognized Sajida Sultan as the legal heir, the recent court ruling once again stirred the family's property dispute.
Residents fear eviction
In view of the court ruling, Bhopal collector Kaushalendra Vikram Singh reportedly announced detailed plans to examine the ownership records of these properties over the last 72 years.
What left the residents of the above-mentioned properties in anxiety is the fear of eviction in the future as the collector said that the individuals staying on these lands may be treated as tenants under the state's leasing laws.
"The stay has been lifted, but merging these properties under the Enemy Property Act is complicated. The Pataudi family still has a chance to appeal," Sumer Khan, a resident told NDTV.
Chand Mian, another resident, expressed concern. "We pay taxes, but there's no registry for our homes. The Nawab's leases should still stand."
Saif Ali Khan knife attack
The development came within days after actor Saif Ali Khan survived a brutal knife attack at his Mumbai Residence in the early hours of Thursday. The 54-year-old actor got six injuries, including one on his neck and one near the spine, in a brutal attack at his house in Bandra and underwent emergency surgery at Mumbai's Lilavati Hospital. On January 21, Khan was discharged from the hospital.
Mumbai Police on Sunday arrested Bangladeshi national Shariful Islam Shehzad Mohammad Rohilla Amin Fakir (30) from neighbouring Thane city for the stabbing incident. A Mumbai court on January 19 granted five-day police custody to Shehzad.
