Hyderabad: Nizam’s kin lays claim on five royal palaces

HYDERABAD: A grandson of Mir Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam of Hyderabad on Monday filed a civil suit in a city court seeking a share in five royal palaces including the iconic Falaknuma Palace, now in the possession of Nizam’s another grandson Mukarram Jah.
Najaf Ali Khan, one of the grandsons of Mir Osman Ali Khan, alleged that Mukarram Jah, the titular Nizam VIII of Hyderabad, had executed a document informing their grandfather that he (Jah) came to know about the execution of the gift deeds in his favour and expressed his unwillingness to accept the gift. Hence, Mukarram Jah, who allegedly rejected the gift of Mir Osman Ali Khan, has no right to claim sole ownership of the five palaces - Falaknuma Palace, King Kothi Palace, Chow Mahalla Palace and Purani Haveli in Hyderabad and Harewood and Cedars Bungalow in Ooty, Tamil Nadu.
In his case filed before the city civil court, Hyderabad, Najaf Ali Khan through his advocates Mohammad Adnan Shaheed and others stated that after Hyderabad State was integrated into India on January 25, 1950 an Instrument of Accession was entered into between the Government of India and Osman Ali Khan, Nizam VII, for merger of Hyderabad into Union of India
“By virtue of this agreement the listed private and personal properties belonging to the Nizam VII were approved, declared and acknowledged by the Union of India to be the private and personal properties of Nizam VII. The properties which were entered in the said list were still in existence at the time of the death of the Nizam VII on February 24, 1967. After his death it was supposed to devolve upon his 16 sons and 18 daughters,” Najaf Ali said alleging that instead the properties are now controlled by Mukarram Jah.
He said in the suit that in 1957 the Nizam VII gifted the properties to Mukarram Jah through gift deeds. At that time he was not present in India. “In reference to the said gifts Mukarram Jah executed a document informing the Nizam VII that he came to know about the execution of the gift deeds in his favour.
He expressed his unwillingness to accept the gift for the reasons that he was unsure of his future and considered himself incapable to maintain the gifted properties with the meagre income that he had,” Najaf Ali claimed in his petition. He alleged that Mukarram Jah orally gifted the properties back to the Nizam VII and he himself executed a memorandum acknowledging the oral gift. He said with great difficulties he brought to light the existence of the gift refusal letter and memorandum of oral gift.