The Koh-i-noor effect: Queen Elizabeth II may face legal challenge over world famous diamond

The prestigious Koh-i-noor about which we have always heard from our fathers and forefathers can be finally brought back from India. A group of Indian businessmen and actors will reportedly be initiating legal proceedings against Queen Elizabeth II demanding the return of the world famous Koh-i-Noor diamond to India.

The Koh-i-noor effect- Queen Elizabeth II may face legal challenge over world famous diamond

“Koh-i-Noor”, which in Persian means “mountain of light”, was once the world’s largest known diamond in the world. The diamond is a 105-carat stone and is believed to have been mined in India more than 800 years ago in the Kollur mine, village in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh. The diamond worth a reported £100m is currently part of Britain’s crown jewels.

The Koh-i-Noor diamond had been passed down from one ruling dynasty to another in India. But after the British colonisation of the Punjab in 1849, the Marquess of Dalhousie, the British governor-general, presented to Queen Victoria and is now placed at the Tower of London.

The group, which has called itself the “Mountain of Light”, say that the 105-carat diamond was stolen from its true home in India and are demanding that the UK government returns it. The campaigners will base their case on the core principles of British law, giving an institution the power to return art that can be considered ‘stolen’.

David de Souza, co-founder of the Indian leisure group Titos, is helping to fund the new legal action and has even instructed British lawyers to begin High Court proceedings.

“The Koh-i-Noor is one of the many artefacts taken from India under dubious circumstances. Colonisation did not only rob our people of wealth, it destroyed the country’s psyche itself. It brutalised society, traces of which linger on today in the form of mass poverty, lack of education and a host of other factors,” De Souza told Sunday Telegraph.

Bollywood actress, Bhumicka Singh, also part of the group, said: “The Kohinoor is not just a 105-carat stone, but part of our history and culture and should undoubtedly be returned.”

The move comes at a time when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit the UK this week, during which he will attend a lunch at the Buckingham Palace. The campaign has gained support from Indian-origin Labour party’s lawmaker Keith Vaz, “What a wonderful moment it would be, if when PM Modi finishes his visit, he returns to India with the promise of the diamond’s return.”

Earlier, British government downright rejected such requests, with PM David Cameron in 2013 who defended Britain’s right to keep it saying he did not believe in “return-ism”.

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