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This U.K. Lawmaker Wants a Huge Diamond in the Queen’s Crown Returned to India

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In the midst of a recently reignited conversation about Great Britain’s colonial debt, particularly to India, one member of the country’s parliament has proposed a preliminary step in repaying the South Asian nation — the return of the famous Koh-i-noor diamond.

U.K. lawmaker Keith Vaz called for the return of the famous jewel on Tuesday and urged Prime Minister David Cameron to promise as much during his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi’s visit this November, the Press Trust of India reports.

Vaz, himself of Indian origin and the longest-serving British MP of Asian descent, also referenced Indian lawmaker Shashi Tharoor’s much-lauded speech at the Oxford Union that recently went viral on social media. Tharoor argued that Britain owes India and its numerous other colonies reparations for centuries of oppression, a position endorsed by Modi.

“I welcome Dr. Tharoor’s speech and the endorsement of its message by Prime Minister Modi. I share their views,” Vaz said. “These are genuine grievances which must be addressed.”

While he recognized that calculating the monetary reparations is anything but straightforward, the British MP said giving back the iconic diamond — which currently adorns the Queen of England’s crown — is one tangible step.

“Pursuing monetary reparations is complex, time consuming and potentially fruitless, but there is no excuse for not returning precious items such as the Koh-i-Noor diamond, a campaign I have backed for many years,” he added.

Once considered the largest diamond in the world, the Koh-i-Noor is said to have been 793 carats uncut when originally mined in the south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh during medieval times, following which it passed through the hands of various invaders — most notably Persian ruler Nadir Shah who gave the precious stone its current name — before being seized by the British East India Company in the mid-19th century.

“What a wonderful moment it would be, if and when Prime Minister Modi finishes his visit, which is much overdue, he returns to India with the promise of the diamond’s return,” Vaz said.

See The History of US—India Relations in 12 Photos

US ARMY BASE IN DINJAN,INDIA
1942: The US held loose relations with "The British Raj" before Indian independence. Yet the Western nation did maintain an Airfield base in Dinjan,India during this time. (Photo by Ivan Dmitri/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)Ivan Dmitri—Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Truman Greets Nehru
1949: Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru takes his first trip to the US and meets with President Harry S. Truman in Washington, Oct. 11, 1949. PhotoQuest/Getty Images
Dwight Eisenhower, Jawaharlal Nehru
1959: US President Dwight D. Eisenhower makes the first official state visit to India’, joining Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru at the Taj Mahal at Agra, India on Dec. 13, 1959.AP
A US plane dropping supplies to Indian troops, during the border war with Red China.
1962: The Kennedy Administration openly supported India during the Sino-Indian War. The US Air Force flew in arms and aid to Indian troops on the Chinese border, Nov. 1, 1962.Larry Burrows—The TIME & LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Richard Nixon, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto
1973: In the early 70s, America's relationship with India deteriorated as the Nixon administration became close allies with Pakistan, viewing India as an ally of the Soviet Union. Here, President Nixon meets with Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto of Pakistan in the oval office of the White House in Washington on Sept. 18, 1973. AP
Jimmy Carter, Morarji Desai, Rosalynn Carter
1978: When the anti-Soviet Janata Party came to power in the late 70s, Indian relations with the US began to improve. President Jimmy Carter visited Indian Prime Minister Morarji Desai in New Delhi in 1978.Charles Harrity—AP
Rajiv Gandhi;Ronald W. Reagan
1987: In the 1980s, the Reagan Administration began to provide limited aid to India and eventually defense technology such as combat aircraft and naval engines. President Ronald W. Reagan met with India's Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in Washington on Oct. 1 1987.Diana Walker—The TIME & LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Indian Nuclear test site
1998: India began nuclear testing in Pokhran in 1998, despite strong condemnation from the US. President Bill Clinton imposed economic sanctions against India.T.C. Malhotra—Getty Images
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (
2005: After the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, the US worked closely with India to strategically monitor the Indian Ocean and Suez Canal to Singapore. Here, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visits Humayun's Tomb in New DelhiPrakash Singh—AFP/Getty Images
INDIA-ASIA-QUAKE-TSUNAMI
2004: The US and Indian navies cooperated on rescue efforts after the Dec. 2004 tsunami that affected the Indian subcontinent. AFP/Getty Images
US President Barack Obama inspects a gua
2010: India-US relations became strained during the Obama Administration due to its policies on insurgents in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Pedro Ugarte—AFP/Getty Images
India's Prime Minister Modi speaks at Madison Square Garden in New York
2014: India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks at Madison Square Garden in New York City on his first visit to the US as Prime Minister, after his US visa had been revoked and reinstated. Lucas Jackson—Reuters

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Write to Rishi Iyengar at rishi.iyengar@timeasia.com