India can’t claim the Kohinoor diamond - Fusion - WeRIndia

The Centre has made a potentially controversial statement. To the Supreme Court, it said that India should not claim the famous Kohinoor diamond from the British government. The reason for this cited by Centre is that the diamond was gifted by Maharaja Ranjit Singh to the then British government.

This statement by the Centre might likely create some controversy in India because of the $200 million Kohinoor diamond being a very popular Indian artifact.

The NDA government at the Centre on the behest of Ministry of Culture made a statement to the Supreme Court that India should not make claim for Kohinoor diamond because it was not stolen nor was it forcibly taken away.

Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar said at the Supreme Court that this was the stand of the Culture Ministry.

He also told the Supreme Court that the Kohinoor diamond was not taken but was handed over by Maharaja Ranjit Singh to the East India Company.

Chief Justice TS Thakur who heard this state asked the Centre if they want the case to be dismissed. He also said that dismissing the case means the Centre may face a problem in the future while putting forward any legitimate claim.

After making the statements, the Supreme Court asked the Centre to file a detailed reply within six weeks. Last week, the Supreme Court asked the Centre to mention reasons for bringing back the famous 105 carat diamond back.

The case to bring back the diamond was first filed by All India Human Rights and Social Justice Front. The Supreme Court made the observation on the case after that. When the case was filed, the petitioner claimed that the British government did not make any effort in bringing back the diamond. The British government rejected the demand of returning the Kohinoor diamond in 2013.

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