Zohran Mamdani, New York City Mayor has called for King Charles to return the prized Koh-i-Noor diamond on the third day of the monarch’s state visit on Wednesday. The Koh-i-Noor was a diamond that the British Empire took from the Indian subcontinent in the 1800s.
Mamdani was asked before meeting Charles and Queen Camilla what he will like to discuss with the King if he had the chance to meet the King. Mamdani was supposed to greet the King and Queen on a 9/11 memorial.
He said that “If I was to speak to the king, separately from that, I would probably encourage him to return the Koh-i-Noor diamond.”
After that he said that currently during the memorial his main focus would be honouring those who have been killed in terror attacks.
It is unclear at the moment whether Mamdani actually raised the contentious issue and actually asked the King to return the Koh-i-Noor.
In the photos Mamdani and the monarch were seen laughing and having a brief conversation after they shook hands.
The massive 106 carat stone, which is housed in the Tower of London is the star of Britain’s crown jewels. The jewel currently adorns the crown of Queen Elizabeth the mother of the King.
For centuries the ownership of the jewel has been contested. It has been passed through the hands of Mughal emperors, Sikh Maharajas, and Iranian Shahs. After this the Kingdom of Punjab gave it to Queen Victoria in 1849 as part of a peace treaty.
India has repeatedly sought the return of the priceless jewel and has been unsuccessful.
There is no doubt that the jewel was mined in India. But after that its history is a mix of fact and fiction. Several countries lay claim to the jewel which include Iran, India, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
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