Kohinoor gem is the pride of India. But this gem is not in our country today. Kohinoor today is in the Tower of London. This rare gem, which has witnessed many historical moments, is worth around Rs 1300 crores. Why is Kohinoor not available in India? Although it belongs to India, today this gem is the family property of the British Queen Elizabeth. The gem is set in a platinum tiara given to his wife by George VI in 1937. It is displayed in the Tower of London. The Kohinoor gem continues to uphold the art and value of India. The journey of the Kohinoor gem through India, Iran and many other countries during the last two centuries is very interesting.
History has it that the Kakatiya dynasty, which ruled from Warangal in Andhra Pradesh, got this gem from the Kollur mines on the banks of the Krishna river. They installed it as the left eye of their clan goddess Warangal Bhadrakali. Later, when the Kakatiyars had to pay tribute to the Delhi Sultans, the Kohinoor Jewel came to Allauddin Khilji. When the Mughals conquered India in 1526, it came into the possession of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire. Then it came to Shah Jahan, the fifth emperor of the Mughal dynasty. During this period it became part of the Mayura throne (1635). Later Shah Jahan's son Aurangzeb took this gem to Lahore and kept it in the Badshahi Masjid there. Meanwhile, in 1739, the Persian invader Nadirsha invaded India. Muhammad Shah was the Mughal king at that time. Nadir Shah Muhammad Shah was imprisoned. But he didn't get Kohinoor alone. Finally Nadirshak got the information that Mohammad Shah kept Kohinoor inside his turban as told by a woman from Antapura. Nadir Shah tactfully invited Muhammad Shah to a feast. Turbans were exchanged, believing it to be a Persian custom. So Nadir Shah, who acquired the Kohinoor gem, smuggled it to Persia.
After Nadir Shah's death in 1747, the jewel was handed over to his successor, Mirza Shah Rukh. Later in 1751, Ahmad Shah Abdali, the founder of the Durrani Empire of the Afghans, defeated Shahrukh and took possession of the Kohinoor Gem. In 1809, Shah Shuja, the fifth Durrani Emperor, defeated his half-brother Mahmud Shah and fled with the Kohinoor Gem. Shah Shuja sought refuge with the Sikh leader Ranjit Singh in Lahore, where he handed over the Kohinoor jewel in his hand to Ranjit Singh in 1813. In 1849, the famous Second Anglo- Sikh War took place. After the English East India Company defeated the Sikhs, the gem came into the hands of the British. The Kohinoor was officially presented to Queen Victoria by the Deputy Chairman of the Company on 3 July 1850 at Buckingham Palace to mark the 250th anniversary of the East India Company. When Queen Victoria ascended to power in India in 1877, the gem became part of her crown.In 1937, Kohinoor reached the crown of Queen Elizabeth I.
After India's independence, the Indian government asked for the Kohinoor in 1947, but the British government refused. In 1953, India again demanded the gem. In 1976, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, wrote to the British Prime Minister requesting the Kohinoor, but in the reply letter, Britain clarified that the Kohinoor would not be handed over to any country. India raised the same demand in 2016. Basically, Kohinoor was gifted to Queen Victoria by India, but according to Britain, there are no clear historical records about the real heir of Kohinoor. Arguments are still going on that Kohinoor, a public property of India, belongs to the Indian state. Since the Persian ruler Nadir Shah took Kohinoor from India, Iran's opinion is that they want Kohinoor for themselves, and almost Afghanistan has also claimed the right. Their argument is that the Kohinoor gem, which was obtained after fighting, belongs to the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan.
In fact Kohinoor was handed over to the British royal family only for protection as a public property and it belonged to India after India became independent. In the past, the Kohinoor gem was placed on top of the Taj Mahal in India. The gem weighs 21.6 grams. It took seven years for Shah Jahan to build the Mayura throne. The Mayura throne was studded with the Kohinoor gem. According to the report of Archaeological Survey of India, this gem was handed over to the British Queen by the Maharaja of Lahore. The report is based on an investigation conducted by a native of Ludhiana under the Right to Information Act. With the passage of time, the Kohinoor matte has reduced to 105 carats which is worrying every Indian. This gem weighed 186.1/16 carats (37.21 grams) when Queen Victoria became the Empress of India in 1877, and cut and polished it to the present 105.602 carats (21.61 grams) to make it part of her crown.
On the death of Queen Elizabeth II (2023), her son Prince Charles became King of Britain, with Addahet's wife, Queen Camilla. His wife Camilla Kohinoor did not wear the tiara at King Charles's coronation to avoid controversy despite claims that the gem belonged to India. Even though many people, including Mahatma Gandhi's grandson, demanded Kohinoor, Britain rejected it. Why Kohinoor, the most precious gem in the world, is considered a cursed gem is something that makes one wonder. The problem with this is the price of this gem. The Kohinoor is considered a cursed gem as all the kings who possessed the gem were attacked by other kings and lost all their thrones.
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