But it has also reminded many of the Monarchy’s dark colonial past, with several current symbols being called into question.
For example, shortly after the Queen’s death was announced, the word “Kohinoor” started trending on Indian Twitter.
This was a reference to the Koh-i-Noor diamond, considered to be the most expensive diamond in the world, which can be found on display in the Tower of London, located in the Queen Mother’s crown.
The 105-carat diamond has a controversial past. For many South Asians, its loss represents India’s subjugation to British colonial rule, and its return is seen as partial reparation for decades of economic exploitation.
Many Twitter users have called on the British government to return the diamond, with many questions being raised about the Koh-i-Noor’s future when King Charles III takes the throne.
“The only difference (her death) could make would be a policy,” Randall Hanson, director of the global migration lab at the University of Toronto, told CTVNews.ca on Friday.
“King Charles inheriting the throne may have an effect on how strongly the Indian government could make the case (for return).
“But legally, (her death) makes absolutely no difference because the decision will not be made by the king but by the British government.”
The Koh-i-Noor will remain as the property of the royal family. Camilla, the wife of King Charles, is said to inherit the crown with the Koh-i-Noor.
But a more relevant question, according to Ritu Birla, an associate professor in the history department at the University of Toronto, is whether reparations can be made for the conquest, which might equal the diamond’s symbolic value.
“People are also making arguments more broadly about reparations in the aboriginal context, for example,” he told CTVNews.ca on Friday.
“So this is one particular object, which obviously has great material as well as symbolic value, opens up larger questions about whether there is, can ever be, adequate compensation for the violence of colonial conquest.”
India is not the first country to ask the UK for an artefact back. In 2020, Greece’s Culture Minister Lina Mendoni urged that 2,500-year-old Parthenon Sculptures be returned to Greece by the British Museum.
The marble sculptures have been in contention for more than three decades, with Greece making several requests almost as often for their return to their original location.
In 2022, the British Museum proposed a partnership that could potentially see the sculptures return to the country, although the terms still remain unclear.
However, the museum’s willingness to negotiate is a positive sign for Birla.
If Greece can achieve that, then “there’s a leg to stand on (for other countries),” Birla told CTVNews.ca.
The Indian government has tried in the past to bring back the Koh-i-Noor. The diamond was first sought by the Indian government after the country’s independence in 1947. In the year of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953, India made another request, according to the New York Times.
These requests were ignored by the UK, which claimed there was no legal basis for returning the Kohinoor to India.
In 2016, a rights group asked the court to order the Indian government to bring back the diamond.
Although it initially said the diamond should not be returned as it was “neither stolen nor taken by force by British rulers”, the Indian government reversed its stance and said it would work to bring back the artifact.
During a 2010 visit to India, British Prime Minister David Cameron told local media that the diamond would remain in Britain.
“If you say yes to one (request), suddenly you find the British Museum would be empty,” Cameron said.
“I’m afraid he’ll have to stay put.”
With files from the Associated Press
