New Delhi, 7, Jantar Mantar Road -- an elegant British-era bungalow in the heart of Delhi -- is not an ordinary address, as it has earlier served as the headquarters of the Indian National Congress (INC) and currently also houses a library run by an old trust.
The two-storey structure located on Jantar Mantar Road is endowed with a striking architectural design and has also been a silent witness to countless public protests and marathon demonstrations held on the road over the past few decades.
The bungalow's architectural design stands out as the windows punctuating the facade on both floors are flanked by slender columns, lending the building a graceful look.
A similar design can be seen in the old building of Connaught Place too.
The bungalow is in the news again, as last week the Delhi High Court sought the stand of the Centre and the Delhi government on a petition by the INC seeking the execution of a sale deed in the party's favour for its former headquarters.
Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav issued notice to the governments on the petition as well as an application for interim relief, seeking their reply on both aspects.
Even as senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for All India Congress Committee, urged the court to pass an interim order to ensure that the premises is not allotted to someone else in the meantime, Justice Kaurav questioned the maintainability of the writ petition.
"I have a doubt about the maintainability. Therefore, if you have to press for interim relief, you have to satisfy that the petition is maintainable. See what the response of the government is. You perhaps have to file a civil suit.. This seems to be to wriggle out of limitation," the judge orally said.
Singhvi said the petitioner party was an allottee and has been in possession of the property for decades but the authorities were yet to act on its request to execute a sale deed in its favour.
In the petition, the Congress said that according to the Delhi government's records, it has been in the possession of a part of the property since February 1946 and an allotment was made in its favour in 1956.
The plea further said that in 1959, the party paid Rs 6.1 lakh to the Government of India towards sale consideration, in addition to paying Rs 96,962 and Rs 4,849 per annum towards additional premium and additional ground rent for change of user.
However, the execution of a sale deed in the party's favour was delayed for several reasons, including litigation by tenants occupying the outhouse and the party also split into two factions in 1969, it added.
The rival faction was called Congress (O), and along with other parties, fought the 1977 elections against the Indira Gandhi-led Congress after the lifting of the Emergency imposed in 1975, and defeated her party.
The INC, in January 2025, moved to its swanky new headquarters -- Indira Bhawan -- at Kotla Marg, shifting from 24, Akbar Road, an address the All India Congress Committee had operated from for 47 years.
Each floor of Indira Bhawan represents an era in the history of the Congress, it had said soon after moving in.
The 7, Jantar Mantar Road, its older headquarters, has also been the central office of the Janata Dal (United) party over the decades.
On its ground floor, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Smarak Trust Library is located, housing some rare books and publications, including those associated with the Congress party.
The bungalow over the years has lost its old charm with its facade needing upkeep, and its grand staircase laden with dust, belying the architectural glory this address once was.
The property was given to Surdar Dharam Singh in 1920 through lease, which was later purchased by Nawab Abdul Hassan Khan who left for Pakistan after partition, following which the central government declared it evacuee property, according to available accounts.
The petition stated that in 2014, the Supreme Court ruled that after the party's split, the petitioner was entitled to all properties and funds existing prior to 1969, and consequently, numerous representations were made to the Delhi government -- which is responsible for management of the property -- from 2017 onwards to execute a sale deed, but to no avail.
Singhvi during the hearing had contended, "I have been asking for execution of conveyance deed repeatedly. There is no denial. There is no response... I am in possession for 70 years. I have got everything -- all documents, all payments. They should not allot it to somebody else."
The court has listed the case for the next hearing on September 14.
