Supreme Court stays MP HC's order remanding property dispute of actor Saif Ali Khan's ancestors to trial court

The petitioners have challenged the High Court’s decision, which set aside a February 14, 2000, trial court judgment that upheld the exclusive rights of Nawab’s daughter Sajida Sultan, her son Mansoor Ali Khan and their legal heirs, actor Saif Ali Khan, Soha Ali Khan, Saba Sultan, and veteran actress Sharmila Tagore over the estate.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday granted an interim stay on a Madhya Pradesh High Court order remanding decades-old property dispute involving the royal estate of Bhopal’s last Nawab, Hamidullah Khan, and ancestors of actor Saif Ali Khan to the trial court for fresh adjudication.

A bench of Justices P S Narasimha and Atul Chandurkar issued notice on a plea of Omar Faruq Ali and Raashid Ali, descendants of the elder brother of Nawab Hamidullah Khan, against the High Court’s order of June 30.

The petitioners have challenged the High Court’s decision, which set aside a February 14, 2000, trial court judgment that upheld the exclusive rights of Nawab’s daughter Sajida Sultan, her son Mansoor Ali Khan (former India cricket captain), and their legal heirs, actor Saif Ali Khan, Soha Ali Khan, Saba Sultan, and veteran actress Sharmila Tagore, over the estate.

On behalf of the petitioners, senior advocate Devadatt Kamat contended that the High Court's remand order was contrary to the provisions of the Civil Procedure Code.

“After 50 years, the appellate court on principles unknown remands the matter back to the trial court. There was no case of remand made out either by the plaintiff or by the defendant. There was no request to lead additional evidence,” he said.

He said the trial court had relied on a 1997 Allahabad High Court judgment, which was subsequently overruled by the Supreme Court in 2019.

However, instead of applying that legal position and disposing of the matter, the High Court had remanded the case, he said.