Overview

• The Supreme Court dismissed Sultana Begum’s petition seeking ownership of the Red Fort, citing a lack of legal merit in her claim.
• Begum, claiming to be the widow of the last Mughal emperor’s great-grandson, argued that the fort was illegally taken by the British after the 1857 rebellion.
• The court questioned why she targeted only the Red Fort and not other Mughal-era sites, calling her petition ‘misconceived.’
• Earlier, the Delhi High Court had twice rejected her plea due to excessive delays in filing, with the original petition filed over 150 years after the events in question.
• The Supreme Court chose not to dismiss the case solely on procedural grounds, instead rejecting it on substantive legal grounds without awarding compensation.