Archive · 4 Oct 2026
Bhopal Panel to Probe Nawab’s Landed Assets Amid Inheritance Dispute
Officials in Bhopal have formed a committee to check records for land once owned by Nawab Hamidullah Khan.
The team will look at records in five parts of the district and inspect several named properties.
The article says the estate is worth more than Rs 10,000 crore overall.
The government says the estate should be treated as enemy property because Hamidullah Khan’s eldest daughter moved to Pakistan.
Saif Ali Khan’s family says another daughter, Sajida Sultan, inherited the properties.
Another branch of the family has asked a court to divide the estate under Islamic law.
The inheritance disputes are still before the courts.
The committee’s work is intended to clarify which properties belong to the estate.
Bhopal district administration formed a seven-member committee to identify and verify properties belonging to former Nawab Hamidullah Khan.
The committee will examine land records across five subdivisions and review properties including Maple House, Riaz Manzil and Nani Ki Haveli.
The estate is valued at more than Rs 10,000 crore; the article separately cites Rs 5,700 crore in Bhopal and Rs 1,370 crore outside the district.
The government classifies the estate as enemy property, citing Hamidullah Khan’s eldest daughter Abida Sultan’s migration to Pakistan after Partition.
Saif Ali Khan’s family disputes that position, while Rabia Sultan and relatives have also sought a partition of the properties; inheritance cases are pending in court.
- Who
- Bhopal district administration; descendants of Nawab Hamidullah Khan, including Saif Ali Khan’s family and Rabia Sultan’s relatives.
- What
- A seven-member committee will investigate and verify land records for the Nawab’s estate amid competing inheritance claims.
- When
- The administration recently issued the survey circular; the article was published on Sunday, but gives no date.
- Where
- Bhopal district, including Bairagarh, TT Nagar, Kolar, Huzur and Govindpura, as well as properties outside the district.
- Why
- To identify and audit the estate’s properties amid disputes over the government’s enemy-property designation and inheritance claims.
Government’s Position
Family Claims
Enemy-property designation
Government’s Position
The government treats the estate as enemy property, citing Abida Sultan’s migration to Pakistan after Partition.
Family Claims
Saif Ali Khan’s family challenges the designation and says Sajida Sultan, Hamidullah Khan’s second daughter, inherited the properties.
Division of the estate
Government’s Position
The article describes the government’s enemy-property position but does not state its view on the family’s partition request.
Family Claims
Rabia Sultan and her relatives have asked the district court to partition the properties under Islamic law.
- Committee
- Seven members, constituted by the Bhopal district administration.
- Estate estimate
- More than Rs 10,000 crore, according to the article.
- Reported district values
- The article cites over Rs 5,700 crore in Bhopal and Rs 1,370 crore outside the district.
- Survey areas
- Bairagarh, TT Nagar, Kolar, Huzur and Govindpura.
- Named properties
- Maple House, Riaz Manzil and Nani Ki Haveli, among others.
- Government position
- The estate was declared enemy property because Abida Sultan, identified as the eldest daughter and an inheritor, migrated to Pakistan during Partition.
- Court status
- Inheritance proceedings are pending; Rabia Sultan and relatives have filed a district-court case seeking partition.