Travancore Royal family sought the intervention of Central government and various local bodies in Delhi in connection with Kerala government's move to inaugurate a cultural centre at Travancore House in New Delhi. The royal family urged the authorities to halt the move. The Travancore House, which originally belongs to Travancore Royal family, is set to be inaugurated as a cultural centre in the heart of the national capital on August 6.
According to PTI, the royal family said that the 14-acre property was allotted to the Travancore Maharaja in 1915 for residential purposes. The property was spread across 8.195 acres and was provided at a cost of Rs 1,800 per acre in 1915. Later, the royal family also purchased the remaining part of the land in 1934 with personal money.
The royal family sent missives to the authorities including Union Home Secretary, the Delhi Development Authority, the Archaeological Survey of India and the New Delhi Municipal Council seeking their intervention.
In the missives, Travancore royal family said that Kerala government did not have permission to renovate the palace or construct a cultural centre.
The royal family has claimed that the prime elite property, which is valued at several hundred crores of rupees and is also designated as a heritage building by the New Delhi Municipal Council, was given to the Indian government in 1939 for use in connection with the war at no cost.
The Indian government noted that the palace in Delhi was owned by and in the possession of the Travancore Darbar in 1948 as it was taken on a direct lease from the former Travancore State by the Soviet Embassy. The royal family has argued that they have every right to rent it out to whoever they please.