LAHORE: Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan of the Lahore High Court on Monday overruled the registrar office’s objection to a petition seeking directions for the federal government to bring back Koh-i-Noor diamond from British Queen Elizabeth-II.

The judge directed the office to fix the petition before any appropriate bench for hearing. The office had objected to the maintainability of the petition, saying the LHC had no jurisdiction to hear a case against the British Queen.

Barrister Javed Iqbal Jaffery had filed the petition alleging that the British had snatched the diamond from Dalip Singh and took it to the United Kingdom. He said the diamond had become part of the crown of Queen Elizabeth-II at the time of her crowning in 1953.

The lawyer said Queen Elizabeth had no right to have the Koh-i-Noor diamond as it was a cultural heritage of Punjab and its citizens owned it. He asked the court to direct the government, being member of the Commonwealth countries, to bring the diamond back to Pakistan.

Published in Dawn, February 9th, 2016

Opinion

Editorial

Military convictions
Updated 22 Dec, 2024

Military convictions

Pakistan’s democracy, still finding its feet, cannot afford such compromises on core democratic values.
Need for talks
22 Dec, 2024

Need for talks

FOR a long time now, the country has been in the grip of relentless political uncertainty, featuring the...
Vulnerable vaccinators
22 Dec, 2024

Vulnerable vaccinators

THE campaign to eradicate polio from Pakistan cannot succeed unless the safety of vaccinators and security personnel...
Strange claim
Updated 21 Dec, 2024

Strange claim

In all likelihood, Pakistan and US will continue to be ‘frenemies'.
Media strangulation
Updated 21 Dec, 2024

Media strangulation

Administration must decide whether it wishes to be remembered as an enabler or an executioner of press freedom.
Israeli rampage
21 Dec, 2024

Israeli rampage

ALONG with the genocide in Gaza, Israel has embarked on a regional rampage, attacking Arab and Muslim states with...