Raja of Mahmoodabad won 32-yr legal battle — only to lose all By INDIAN Express

The amendment in Enemy Properties Act 1962, made through an Ordinance by the Centre, has brought the erstwhile Raja of Mahmoodabad, Mohammed Amir Mohammed Khan back to square one.

The Raja had won the possession of his ancestral properties, worth hundreds of crores, after a 32-year court battle in October 2005. On Wednesday, the Lucknow district administration formally took possession of six of his properties, as directed by the Custodian of Enemy Properties under the Union Home Ministry.

The Ordinance, which was promulgated last week, says that courts cannot alter the status of any property that was once declared ‘enemy property’. The Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Bill 2010, which will replace the Ordinance, is likely to be tabled during the current session of Parliament. The properties that are now under the state’s possession are: Butlar Palace, Lawrie Building — which houses a hotel, garment store and a restaurant — Mehmoodabad Mansion, Halwasiya Market, all located in the Hazratganj area, Siddiqui building at Charbagh and Lal Kothi at Molviganj.

“The district administration has taken possession of the six properties in Lucknow as per the directions of the Custodian of Enemy Properties. With the promulgation of the Ordinance for the amendment in the Act, the ownership of all these properties have been vested with the Custodian and these have been declared as enemy properties and its owner as national enemy,” said Mahendra Singh, Sub-Divisional Magistrate of Lucknow Sadar tehsil.

The Supreme Court, through its order in October 2005, had entitled the erstwhile Raja of Mehmoodabad to all properties that were seized by the government after his late father chose to migrate to Pakistan. The court order was based on the plea that since Mohammed Amir Mohammed Khan had chosen not to migrate with his father and had stayed back in India as a rightful Indian citizen, he was entitled to reclaim his rights over these properties.