A high-profile dowry dispute involving a rare 1951 Rolls-Royce, custom-built for the Maharani of Baroda, on Friday has sparked a legal battle between 2 prominent royal families in India.
The dispute centers on the marriage of a woman from the Gwalior royal family, which traces its lineage to an admiral of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, and the son of a former Army colonel with a family business in education.
The marriage, arranged and solemnized in 2018, has since been marred by allegations of dowry demands.
According to the bride, she was never taken to her husband’s home due to the ongoing dowry dispute. She claims that her husband’s family, captivated by a family heirloom—a vintage 1951 Rolls-Royce—demanded the car as part of the dowry, along with a flat in Mumbai.
This demand led to an escalation of tensions, culminating in the groom’s family filing a complaint against the bride’s family, accusing them of financial deceit during the wedding.
In response, the bride filed a dowry harassment complaint against her husband and his family. Initially, the Madhya Pradesh High Court quashed the dowry-related FIR, ruling in favor of the groom’s family. However, the bride has taken her fight to the Supreme Court, challenging the High Court’s decision.
At the Supreme Court hearing, senior advocate Vibha Datta Makhija, representing the bride, emphasized the unique challenges her client faces due to the traditional values of her royal community. Makhija pointed out that in this community, remarriage is typically not allowed, further complicating the situation for the bride.
This legal battle has drawn significant attention, not just for its high-profile nature and the involvement of royal families, but also for the broader issues it raises about dowry, financial disputes, and the challenges faced by women in traditional families.
As the case progresses in the Supreme Court, it is likely to spark further debates on the implementation of anti-dowry laws and women’s rights within aristocratic circles in India.
