The royal family of erstwhile Travancore has approached the Kerala government seeking urgent steps to stop the renovation works being carried out at Travancore House at K.G. Marg in New Delhi.
According to a covenant signed between the Union of India and the royal family in 1948, Travancore House in 14 acres is a private property belonging to the Maharaja of Travancore. Further, as per file no 17(20) - P/49 of the Ministry of States dated August 28, 1949, Travancore House is on the list of private properties belonging to the Maharaja of Travancore Sree Chithira Thirunal Bala Rama Varma. Though the property was given to the Government of India free of cost during the Second World War by the Maharaja, the covenant clearly mentioned that Travancore House belonged to the royal family or to a person of their choice, the family said in a recent statement.
From March 1, 1948 the building was leased to the Soviet embassy for 10 years at a monthly rent of ₹3,500. On February 17, 2019 Adithya Varma, a member of the royal family, submitted an application to the Land and Development Commissioner, New Delhi, requesting that the ownership of the land be transferred to them. It was, however, learnt that although the Deputy Land and Development Commissioner had written to the Kerala government seeking an explanation, he did not receive a reply, the statement said.
