Hyderabad Nizam's Mahabaleshwar property sealed over ownership dispute, frequent fights
Mumbai, Dec 05: Owing to frequent disputes, the land leased to the then Nizam of Hyderabad at Mahabaleshwar in Satara district of Maharashtra has been reportedly seized by the Maharashtra government. A 15-acre 15-gunta plot of land and Woodland and a luxurious bungalow worth Rs 250 crore were sealed down following the orders of Satara collector Ruchesh Jayvanshi, according to a report.
"There have been frequent disputes between two parties regarding the possession of this government property, due to which a law and order situation used to arise. On December 1, a mob of people, claiming to be from the Nizam's side, tried to take possession of the property forcibly. Hence, to put an end to the dispute, it was decided to seal the property. Accordingly, the main bungalow and surrounding land were seized," the daily quoted the collector as saying.
It is reported that the people who lived in the staff quarters, were asked to leave the premises at the hill station of and no outside were allowed to enter the area as the authorities carried out the sealing down process.
History
During
the
British
rule,
the
plot
was
leased
to
a
Parsi
lawyer
which
was
later
allotted
to
Nawab
Mir
Osman
Alli
Khan
Bahadur,
the
Nizam
of
Hyderabad,
in
1952.
Since
he
had
failed
to
clear
income-tax
arrears,
the
authorities
decided
to
record
the
property
for
recovery
of
a
sum
amounting
to
Rs
59,47,797
and
sale,
mortgaging
and
any
kind
of
transaction
was
prohibited
till
the
recovery
was
made,
the
report
said.
As he failed to clear income tax arrears, it was recorded against the property for recovery of a sum amounting to Rs 59,47,797. Also, they were prohibited from selling, mortgaging and any kind of transaction until the recovery of the said amount. The issue was resolved years later.
Nawab Mir Osman Alli Khan Bahadur had named Mir Barkat Ali Khan as his successor. A collector's order omitted the name of all the lessees in 2003 and the government took back the property. In 2005, the order was withdrawn and the property was transferred in the name of Dilip Thakkar. Thereafter, the dispute between Thakkar and the Nizam's successor started.