The Manarana’s position was never founded upon the possession of land, ownership of castles or any material wealth but on trusteeship, and in its maintenance of what had been so bestowed to Bappa Rawal, the founding father, and his decendants by Harit Rashi, the family Guru. All the Diwans of Mewar administered the State in the spirit of “ he whose duty it is to please”.

The rightful responsibility of the Diwans of Mewar is to exercise authority, not as sovereigns but as servants of Shri Eklingji, bound by custom to serve his will and administer on his behalf. Whatever power they possessed was due only to their being Eklingji’s earthly representatives to the “divine right to rule” inherently possessed by other Kings. This form of rule is unique in the world.

The famous historian Shri G.H.Ojha in his book, “History of Rajputana” describes fourteen centuries of rule in Mewar :

“In the past 1400 years of ancient states have perished, many new states were founded and the fortunes of India have undergone many vicissitudes. Hundreds of princes bowed before the might of the Imperial powers at Delhi and surrendered their honour, traditions and dignity at their feet, but the ruling family of Udaipur, which is the oldest ruling family in the world, has not diverted from its path of firmly maintaining its honour and traditons unimpaired, in spite of suffering innumerable hardships, undergoing untold dangers and sacrificing wealth and worldly comforts. It is because of this that India looks upon the Maharanas with respect and calls them “Sun of Hindus”.

My revered father, His late Highness Maharana Bhagwat Singhji Mewar, possessed singularity of vision. He was deeply rooted to tenacious family traditions. In my recollection he never sought his own advantage in anything. He believed that change rarely invalidates the past and it does not necessarily imply a rejection of the old. A great deal can and should be preserved from the past. This applies as much to those aspects that touch our sense of beauty and achievement, as to those that help us to function on a day to day basis. In particular we should treasure the ancient and selfless values that have stood the test of time.

His late Highness Maharana Bhagwat Singhji also, therefore, had another important issue to address after the events of 1971. Under such changed circumstances, in order to continue and immortalise the name, duties and functions of Maharana, he had to reshape his role within the four corners of law, and therefore, he decided to transfer his personal and invidual rights, as a Maharana, into the Institution of Maharana. He had to find new ways to enable him and his successive custodians to continue to perform their duties in perpetuity as Diwan of Shri Eklingji. He thus converted the Institution of Maharana into a juristic person, despite the events of 1947 and 1971. His solution is based on the fact that no one, or any law, or any Constitution can debar man from peforming his duties to serve society. In the form of trusteeship, the Institution of Mewar, in contemporary times, therefore, still remains a manifestation of rulership.

It has been claimed that the Diwans of Mewar, because of the sense of truth and honour, have been slow to make decisions for overwhelming fear of making an error of judgement. If there is any substance of this claim then His late Highness Maharana Bhagwat Singhji Mewar erred by showing foresight in establishing the Maharana Mewar Charitable Foundation in 1969, some few years before the Constitutional Amendment of 1971.

Out of profound dedication and commitment as Diwan in a constitutional democracy, he decided to settle an endowment of Rs.11 lakhs, the Zanana and Mardana Palace situated in the City Palace Complex in Udaipur with all its historical contents into a public charitable trust titled : The Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation. He described this act in his own words “ as a humble effort to preserve the age-old traditions and obligations of the House of Mewar to serve society and assist man to realise his special status in the hierarchy of God’s creations and to serve as a temple of inspiration to future generations to preserve and protect the spirit of self-respect and self-reliance”.

The Maharana Mewar Annual Awards were instituted in 1980 by His late Highness Maharana Bhagwat Singhji Mewar. From a modest beginning of awards only for the college and school students in Udaipur, the scope and spectrum of awards has been steadily widening from year to year and so have the numbers and quantum of the awards. Today, the Scheme envisages recognition of service of permanent value already rendered to society by eminent persons through their chosen field of activity, including college and school childern and child artists, who have by their outstanding achievements already displayed their potential for achieving success and rendering services to society. It is our constant endeavour to widen the scope of activities for these awards.

One cannot disagree with the statement made by Sir Conrad Corfield at his meeting with Maharana Fateh Singhji during his visit to Udaipur.

“There was clearly something to be said for preserving such qualities for the future well-being of India”. I strongly believe that the activities under the aegis of the Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation are in tune with the values and principles and in consonance with the responsiblities and duties laid down from our past.

I am proud to be a citizen of India, but in our constitutional democracy it is not easy for me to evaluate, quantify or explain to others the magnitude of my inheritance. As a result of the creation of the Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation, I feel, to serve society and continue to live with self-respect and self-reliance. I am confident that with the blessings of Shri Eklingji and the trust reposed in me by my father, I will be able to continue to serve Manav Dharma befittingly as the present custodian of the House of Mewar.