New Delhi: Charles III was crowned king in a solemn and traditional ceremony at London’s Westminster Abbey on Saturday.
St Edward’s Crown – made of solid gold — was placed on Charles’ head to cries of ‘God Save the King’ to mark the first coronation of a British monarch since 1953 (and only the fifth since 1838).
The coronation is the religious confirmation of the accession to the throne of the 74-year-old Charles, who has been king since the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth II last September.
The Archbishop of Canterbury crowns King Charles III.
Cries of God Save The King fill Westminster Abbey.#Coronation pic.twitter.com/MjCZbE7l3T
— Royal Central (@RoyalCentral) May 6, 2023
Even as Britain celebrated the day this historic occasion, the mood in India was anything but celebratory.
Even as the telecast of the two-hour coronation ceremony was underway, netizens took to social media to demand te return of Kohinoor.
Now that the coronation of Charles is over, give us back our Kohinoor, was the common sentiment expressed by netizens.
“Queen Camilla’s decision to use the Queen Mary Crown without the Kohinoor at her Westminster Abbey crowning is a direct result of the sensitivity that exists around colonialism in modern-day Britain,” Anita Anand, who co-authored ‘Koh-i-Noor: The History of the World’s Most Infamous Diamond’ with historian-author William Dalrymple, was quoted as saying by PTI.
“Congratulations to the British King Charles. Please give back the Kohinoor diamond and other looted valuables from India,” wrote one user.
Among other reactions are:
“Now that all the #CoronationDay drama is over…can we have the #Kohinoor back? How long will they with stolen stuff?”
“All thanks to greater awareness in India about the British colonial loot. The royal family is ditching Kohinoor studded crown for coronation. Hight time they return it as well.”
“Can we have the damn Kohinoor back.”
“Kohinoor Wapas Kar”.
“India want King Charles III to return Kohinoor, a massive 105-carat diamond worth $592 million.”
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