Bulldozers wipe clean Shah Rukh’s mother’s plot

The 400 square metre plot in Madangir was alloted in November 1984 in the name of Shah Oil Traders, owned by Shah Rukh’s mother Latif Fatima. The plot (No. 24) given to her on a licence for commercial use. From that plot, the Khan family ran a kerosene oil depot, sources said.

According to sources, Shah Oil Traders hadn’t paid rent since 1984, and the arrears had accumulated to over Rs 14 lakh. According to Kuldeep Singh of the DDA, the agency had been sending reminders of non-payment of license fee of Rs 3,000 a month to Fatima since 1985. “In the last 15 years we have sent nearly 17 letters, but there was no response,” he said. Finally on December 28, 1999 the DDA was asked to attach the property.

It is ironic that the superstar, who lives in one of Mumbai’s few heritage bungalows at Bandra, should lose out on the property for a mere Rs 14,20,705. However, Kuldeep Singh confirmed that there is nothing to connect Shah Rukh Khan with the property, since the lease had not been transferred to his name. His name only appears on the lease deed as a witness, verifying Latif Fatima’s signature.

Yet, according to Maqsooma and her family, who were rendered homeless by the demolition, Shah Rukh owes them an explanation. “We were brought here by madam (Shah Rukh’s mother) around 15 years ago,” she said. Employed to guard the property, they got just enough time to remove their furniture before the JCB proceeded to demolish the house. When the DDA officials first came for an inspection, Maqsooma claims that she spoke to Shah Rukh Khan, who assured them that even if the demolition occured, he would ensure that they would not be rendered homeless.