The diamond crown said to be worn by Queen Consort Camilla at next year’s Coronation has sparked a row with India’s governing party over its “painful history”.
Camilla, 75, is set to wear the late Queen Mother’s jewel-encrusted crown, which features the famous 105-carat Koh-i-Noor diamond, at King Charles III’s Coronation in May.The controversial diamond is one of the largest-cut in the world and was included as part of the Crown Jewels after it was offered to Queen Victoria by the last Sikh emperor of India, aged 10 at the time.There have been disputes over the gift, with India and several other countries claiming that the diamond should be returned.
India’s governing party has said that Camilla's use of the diamond crown at the Coronation could “transport a few Indians back to the days of the British Empire.” A spokesperson for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party told The Telegraph: “The coronation of Camilla and the use of the crown jewel Koh-i-Noor brings back painful memories of the colonial past. “Most Indians have very little memory of the oppressive past.
Five to six generations of Indians suffered under multiple foreign rules for over five centuries. “Recent occasions, like Queen Elizabeth II's death, the coronation of the new Queen Camilla and the use of the Koh-i-Noor do transport a few Indians back to the days of the British Empire in India.” OK!
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