On July 25, 2013, at the age of 80, Amrit Kaur, the eldest daughter of the former Maharaja of Faridkot Harinder Singh Brar, won half of her father's staggering Rs 20,000-crore property after a 21-year-long legal battle. The remaining half went to her younger sister, Deepinder Kaur.
Before she could begin to celebrate, Amrit Kaur realised that the battle is far from over - in fact, it has just turned uglier. Soon after a court in Chandigarh ruled in her favour, many more claimants to the property have emerged. Amrit Kaur is now up against her sister, and her cousins who have decided to challenge the court order.
FAMILY FIGHT
Way back in October 1992, Amrit Kaur filed a civil suit in the Chandigarh court challenging a 1982 will of her father produced by the Meharwal Khewaji Trust soon after his death in 1989.
The trust, headed by her sister Deepinder, had been controlling the properties since the raja's death.
Amrit, who move court against denial of right in the ancestral property, won the battle when the court termed the trust as 'void' and granted her a share in her father's property as his surviving legal heir along with her sister.
Amrit Kaur, the eldest daughter of the former Maharaja of Faridkot, won half of her father's vast Rs 20,000 crore property after a lengthy court battle - but now her sister and cousins are challenging her claim
Amrit Kaur, the eldest daughter of the former Maharaja of Faridkot, won half of her father's vast Rs 20,000 crore property after a lengthy court battle - but now her sister and cousins are challenging her claim
Deepinder, who is married in a royal family in Burdwan, West Bengal, is preparing to file an appeal against the court ruling.
"She is out of Burdwan and is expected to return soon.
The trust has called an emergency meeting of board of trustees on Wednesday to chalk out the plan of action. We are consulting the advocates," executive trustee of the trust, Lalit Mohan Gupta, told Mail Today.
To compound Amrit's woes, her cousins Bharat Inder Singh Brar and Devinder Kaur - children of her father's younger brother Manjit Inder Singh - have joined the property war. They have decided to move court, staking their claim on the basis of the Rule of Primogeniture (the right of the first-born son or eldest surviving male heir to inherit the family estate).
NEW WILLS
So far, there was just one controversial will, according to which all the movable and immovable properties of the Faridkot kingdom were to be passed on to the trust upon the Maharaja's death. Deepinder and Maheepinder Kaur, youngest of the four children of the Maharaja, were named chairperson and vice-chairperson, respectively, of the trust. Four trusted aides of the Maharaja - Niranjan Singh , Mia Umrao Singh , Lal Singh and Gurdev Singh - became the trustees.
This will and the trust was declared as void. But two more wills have surfaced after the court decision.
"The Maharaja had executed another registered will on May 22, 1952, regarding certain specific properties. This will was undisputed till date and should 'automatically' apply after the 1982 will was declared as illegal by court," Amar Inder Singh Brar, the son of Bharat Inder Singh, said.
He said his father "will soon file an appeal in exercise of his rights".
The Mehmuana royal family (descendents of the Brars) has also decided to move court for a share in the royal property. There are four members of Mehmuana family who, they claim, are inducted as a trustee in the on a rotation basis. The present trustee, Gurdip Inder Singh, claims to possess a will which says they also have a right in the property.
"We want to prove that the Maharaja was not depressed and was living a normal life before he died. He signed the will when he was in good mental and physical health. He has written letters to us, he used to attend all family events. We have sufficient evidence to prove our claim," Gurdip said.
