A grandson of the last ruler of the Indian princely state of Hyderabad has joined the claims for a share of a fortune frozen in a London bank.

The Nizam of Hyderabad deposited £1m in the bank in 1948. It is now estimated to be worth £30m.

India, Pakistan and other descendants of the Nizam have to agree a settlement before it is released.

The grandson, Najaf Ali Khan, has lobbied the Indian prime minister for his help in the case.

Last month, India said it would begin negotiations with Pakistan to settle the dispute.

'Remember us'

So far, the best known claimant has been Mukarram Jah, the Nizam's oldest grandson who inherited his title.

But Najaf Ali Khan is disputing the claim.

"Mukarram Jah is not the only legal heir and for that reason I have led a team of family members to meet the prime minister," Mr Khan told journalists in Delhi where he was accompanied by his sister and 10 other descendants.

"We have requested Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee to discuss the issue with the Pakistan government when he visits Islamabad next week," he said.

"When India and Pakistan discuss ways to disburse £30m they should remember that in all there are 96 descendants."

He said news of the negotiations between India and Pakistan made them decide to make their claims public.

"We have never been in the media. Mukarram Jah and his younger brother Muffakham Jah have always been in the limelight," he said hinting at their wealthy cousins' exalted economic status.

The origins of the dispute go back to 1947 when India and Pakistan were created.

The Nizam - a Muslim and widely believed to be the world's richest man could not decide whether his princely state should become part of India or Pakistan.

India annexed the state in 1948. But just before that, the Nizam deposited £1m in an account controlled by Pakistan's High Commissioner to London in the National Westminster Bank.

For 60 years, the money has remained untouched and the dispute over who should get it has rumbled on.

In 1957, after several rounds of litigation between the Nizam and the Pakistani government, the case reached Britain's highest court, the House of Lords, which ruled that the account could only be unfrozen with the agreement of all the parties.

Najaf Ali Khan says he represents 96 cousins and insists that the governments of India and Pakistan cannot ignore them when negotiating the disbursement of the money.

Courtesy: BBC News 

Published in : The News, Asia & Region

Keywords : News, Asia & Region, Nizam heirs claim London fortune

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