Sirdar Ikbal Ali Shah was an Indian-Afghan author and diplomat descended from the Sadaat of Paghman. Born and educated in India, he came to Britain as a young man to continue his education in Edinburgh, where he married a young Scotswoman.

Sardhana is a city and a municipal board in Meerut district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is 85 km (53 mi) northeast of New Delhi and 13 mi from Meerut. It is 5 km from Meerut Karnal National Highway and 12 km from National Highway 58. It is famous for its cloth and timber industries, and its church.