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Justice Rekha Palli of the Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a plea filed seeking possession of Red Fort by an individual. The plea was filed by one Sultana Begum who claimed possession on grounds that she is the widow of the great grandson of the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar II.

In the petition, Sultana begum has contended that  she was the widow of the great-grandson of Bahadur Shah Zafar II. It was argued that her family had been deprived of their property by the British East India Company following the first war of Independence in 1857, after which Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled from the country and possession of the Red Fort was taken away from the Mughals.

Justice Palli noted that there is no documentary evidence to prove the petitioner's claim that she is related to the last Mughal Emperor. Further, the Court noted that there has been an inordinate delay of 150 years and stated:

“My history is very weak, but you claim injustice was done to you by the British East India Company in 1857. Why is there a delay of over 150 years? What were you doing for all these years?” 

The petitioner contended that the was due to the fact that that Begum was an illiterate woman. However, the Court rejected the argument and said there was no justification for why steps were not taken on time.

The petition was, therefore, dismissed.

Sultana Begum v. Union of India