BJP MLA Vishvaraj Singh was formally appointed as the head of the Mewar royal family in a ceremony held at the Fatehprakash Mahal in Chittorgarh Fort on Monday, following the death of his father, Mahendra Singh Mewar, earlier this month.
The ceremony, attended by heads of several royal families, marked a significant moment for the Mewar dynasty. However, the ceremony was overshadowed by an ongoing dispute between Vishvaraj’s father and his estranged younger brother, Arvind Singh Mewar.
Arvind, who chairs the Shree Eklingji Trust in Udaipur, which oversees the family’s temple and palace, issued a legal notice challenging Vishvaraj’s planned visit to the Eklingnath temple and the city palace, which are under his control.
The notice, issued by Arvind’s legal team, claimed that the visit was an attempt to “trespass” and declared that unauthorised individuals would be denied access to both sites.
In response to the legal challenge, additional police were deployed outside the city palace to ensure security. The temple trust announced it would permit entry only to individuals authorised by them, with similar restrictions placed on access to the palace.
Legal action has been threatened in case of any attempts to force entry or damage property, according to Arvind’s lawyer.
The rift between the two brothers continues to escalate, casting a shadow over the ceremonial occasion.