Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan and his family have faced a major legal setback in the inheritance battle over the royal properties of the former Nawab of Bhopal. The Madhya Pradesh High Court’s Jabalpur Bench has overturned a 25-year-old verdict by a lower court that had previously recognised Saif’s family as the rightful heirs. The court has now mandated a fresh hearing to resolve the issue within a year.
How did Saif Ali Khan inherit Bhopal’s Nawab Hamidullah Khan’s property?
The dispute traces back to Saif Ali Khan’s paternal grandmother, Sajida Sultan, the second daughter of Nawab Hamidullah Khan, who was the last ruling monarch of the Bhopal princely state. When her elder sister, Abida Sultan, migrated to Pakistan in 1950, Sajida was declared the successor to the Nawab’s title and properties. She later married Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, the Nawab of Pataudi, and was the mother of cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi.
Saif Ali Khan, as Sajida Sultan’s grandson, became a beneficiary of her extensive inheritance, which includes multiple estates and thousands of acres of land around Bhopal, such as the Noor-Us-Sabah Palace Hotel, Flag Staff House, and Dar-Us-Salam.
What is the legal dispute?
Rabia Sultan, the Nawab’s third daughter, and members of Hamidullah Khan’s extended family, including his brother Obaidullah Khan, had filed suits in the 1970s demanding division of the estate under Muslim Personal Law. They argued that the succession to private property should not follow the line of monarchical inheritance outlined in the Bhopal Succession to the Throne Act of 1947.
The case went on for decades, and in a 2000 trial, the court decided in favour of Sajida Sultan. The ruling maintained that she was the sole successor under the 1947 succession law and disregarded the claims made under Sharia law.
When Madhya Pradesh high court reopened the case
On June 30, the Madhya Pradesh High Court nullified the lower court’s decision and called for a retrial. The order stated, “The trial Court shall make all possible efforts to conclude and decide it expeditiously, preferably within a period of one year.”
Following the latest High Court order, legal experts suggest the Pataudi family’s share in the estate may be minimal. Senior advocate Jagdish Chavan, who has represented the Pataudi family, estimated, “Saif Ali Khan, by my calculation, will receive only two to three per cent of the Nawab’s property.” He also remarked that the family now has limited legal options left to pursue a larger claim.
On the work front, Saif was last seen in Netflix’s Jewel Thief: The Heist Begins, also starring Jaideep Ahlawat. Apart from this, he has a couple of exciting films lined up, such as Go Goa Gone 2, directed by Raj & DK alongside Abhishek Banerjee and Radhika Madan in the lead roles.
Besides this, Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan will soon share the screen after 17 years for a thriller directed by Priyadarshan, officially titled Haiwaan.