begum wilayat mahal, self-proclaimed great granddaughter of the last nawab of awadh, wajid ali shah, was reportedly allotted the mahal in may 1985, following the intervention of the prime minister of india, indira gandhi in 1984. begum wilayat mahal had been protesting for nine years by living in a waiting room at the new delhi railway station, demanding compensation for the loss of her ancestral property in awadh which was seized when wajid ali shah's kingdom was annexed by the british.