Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh High Court has delivered a significant judgment setting aside a trial court order and remanding a long-standing case involving the partition of the personal estate of the late Nawab of Bhopal—an issue affecting actor Saif Ali Khan and other members of the erstwhile royal family.
Justice Sanjay Dwivedi pronounced the ruling on June 30, 2025, in appeals challenging a February 14, 2000 order of the District Judge, Bhopal, which had dismissed partition suits filed by the appellants.
The court dealt with appeals filed by Begum Suraiya Rashid & Others and Nawabzadi Qamar Taj Rabia Sultan & Others against Begum Mehr Taj Nawab Sajida Sultan & Others, involving the division of extensive properties left behind by the late Nawab Mohd. Hamidullah Khan of Bhopal.
The case also concerns actor Saif Ali Khan, who is a descendant of the Nawab through his mother, veteran actress Sharmila Tagore (referred to as Sharmila in the genealogical records), making him one of the potential heirs to the estate.
The High Court noted that the trial court had erroneously relied on an Allahabad High Court ruling from 1997 (AIR 1997 All 122), which was subsequently overruled by the Supreme Court in 2020 in the landmark Talat Fatima Hasan case.
The central legal issue was whether the Nawab’s private properties should be distributed under Muslim Personal Law or passed automatically to the successor to the throne under the rule of primogeniture.
The appellants, including members of the actor’s family, contended that the properties were personal and should be divided among all legal heirs in accordance with Muslim Personal Law. The respondents, however, argued that the 1949 Merger Agreement between Bhopal State and the Union of India, along with the Bhopal Succession to the Throne Act, 1947, mandated inheritance solely by the successor ruler.
In a crucial observation, Justice Dwivedi noted that the trial court had ignored the fact that the precedent it relied upon had been overturned, stating, “The trial court, without considering other aspects of the matter, dismissed the suits relying upon the judgment reported in AIR 1997 All 122, but failed to note that it was later overruled by the Supreme Court.”
The High Court emphasized that these were family partition suits, and if the trial court finds merit in the claims, the share of each party—including Saif Ali Khan and other heirs—must be determined through proper proceedings.
Considering the suits were filed back in 1999, the High Court directed the trial court to make all efforts to conclude the matter expeditiously, preferably within one year.
The case involves numerous properties listed across various schedules and could significantly affect inheritance rights within the royal lineage.
Case Title: Begum Suraiya Rashid & Others vs. Begum Mehr Taj Nawab Sajida Sultan & Others
*(FA Nos. 437 of 2000 & 296 of 2000)
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