PIX: Descendents of a Mughal emperor live in penury

The story of middle-aged Sultana Begum is heart-wrenching. Her husband Mirza Bedar Bakht, the great grandson of last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar, died in penury.

Bedar Bakht sharpened knives to eke out a living. After his death, the West Bengal government was approached by several organisations to provide an accommodation for the family. Sultana Begum ultimately got an accommodation but it was near the red light district. The goons occupied the house.

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She therefore continued to live in the slum. The anti-social elements preyed upon her daughters, while she ran hither and thither to get protection for her daughters. 

The poignant story of the descendants of the last Mughal who had to see the sight of his own sons' eyes gouged out and brought to him by the British, and was exiled to Burma, proves the failure of the state.

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Sultana Begum shows a letter from the ministry of home affairs for an enhancement in the monthly political pension she receives.

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A picture of Mirza Bedar Bakht, the great grandson of the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar.