Sharmila Tagore, wife of legendary cricketer late Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, who arrived here on Wednesday with the purpose of finding a solution to the property dispute between her late husband and his sisters, was visibly shaken by the total lack of maintenance of Bada Bag — the mausoleum of Maimuna Sultan, the wife of Bhopal’s last Nawab Hamidullah Khan on Thursday.
Bada Baug is supposed to be a prime Waqf property at one end of the congested Hamidia Road in the old Bhopal area. It has been encroached from all sides and the tomb has also lost its grandeur due to poor maintenance.
Nawab Pataudi’s two sisters Saleha Begum and Sabiha Begum, both settled in Hyderabad, were caught in a legal wrangle with her brother over the royal property, including the Flag Staff House.
Ms Tagore, who is also called Ayesha Begum, is confident that she would be able to reach an out of court accord with the extended family. Saleha Begum and her younger sister Sabiha Begum’s husband Arjuman Ali Khan have also come here to find a solution to the property dispute that would satisfy them all. Saleha begum’s son Faiz Bin Jung is also camping here to seek an out of court settlement.
The Flag staff House, where late Nawab of Pataudi stayed when he visited Bhopal became a disputed property after a lower court granted his sisters the right to stay in this mansion.