Hyderabad Fund Case: UK court rejects India’s bid to strike out Pakistan’s 35 m pound claim

Islamabad : A high court in the United Kingdom today rejected India’s attempt to strike out Pakistan’s claim to the Hyderabad Fund.
The Pakistan Foreign Office in its official release said that the 75-page judgment of Mr. Justice Henderson J. was a clear vindication of Islamabad’s principled stance, and added that an effective legal strategy was being pursued by the new legal team.According to the release, India had failed to persuade the court that Islamabad’s position was untenable and that it could show no legal entitlement to the 35 million GBP sitting in a bank account in the name of the High Commissioner of Pakistan, since September 20, 1948.
As the result, Mr. Justice Henderson accepted that there was good evidence in support of Pakistan’s claim to the monies, which needed to be fully considered at a trial.
He also accepted that there were good legal arguments which were supportive of Pakistan’s position.
Losing its applications, India will now face a substantial costs claim.Pakistan’s legal team was led by by Khawar Qureshi QC, who advanced strong legal arguments and placed cogent evidence before the judge, which defeated the India’s argument that Pakistan’s claim to the monies was not valid, the official release said.Pakistan’s leading Counsel presented arguments before the judge saying that India and the Princes could not assert that Islamabad’s claim to the monies was without basis.
Recalling the history, Pakistan’s leading Counsel pointed out, “Events in 1947-1948 were very tense and the State of Hyderabad (which the Judge accepted was a Sovereign state at the time) was in danger of being attacked and taken over by India, and had called upon Pakistan for assistance.”