In 2019, a representative of one of the branches of the Travancore royal family, based in Thiruvananthapuram, wrote to the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs seeking help to reclaim two prime properties in New Delhi, located on Kasturba Gandhi Marg and Copernicus Marg, which the family considers its ancestral assets.
The letter by Adithya Varma, who represents Kowdiar Palace, said that Travancore House (8.195 acres) was originally owned by the Maharaja of Travancore and that the Government of Kerala holds only the right of possession and not ownership. The Kapurthala House plot (6.104 acres) adjacent to it was taken over by the Union government in 1939 to house soldiers of the territorial army. The letter sought help from the Union government to provide documents related to their title awards to help them claim possession of these properties.
This week, media reports said Veugopal Varma, a member of the royal family based in Bengaluru, has executed a sale deed with Sahana Real Estate and Builders based in Chennai to sell Travancore House along with another plot the family owns in Bengaluru for Rs 250 crore.
A representative of the royal family in Thiruvananthapuram has denied that they have anything to do with the sale deed mentioned in the report. “As far as I know, they (those who signed the agreement) have no right to sell it now. We came to know about this only through media reports. Somebody might have misled them,” Adithya Varma, the youngest prince in the royal lineage, told the media.
The Kerala government too has denied reports that Travancore House would change hands and reiterated that the ownership of the property completely rests with them.
“The Travancore Palace is fully owned by the Government of Kerala, which has plans to build a culture centre there. There is no decision to hand over the property,” said Harikrishnan MS, Under Secretary to the government and additional state protocol officer.
Media reports said even if the sale deed has legal validity, the buyer has to negotiate with the branch of the royal family in Thiruvananthapuram, which is entitled to half the share of the property. The buyer also has to get a No Objection Certificate from the Kerala government. The onus of all approvals lies on the buyer, who also has to bear the cost, according to reports.
The story of Travancore House, also known as Travancore Palace, begins when the Maharaja of Travancore was allotted land to build a palace in Delhi in 1915. The 'palace', a pristine white Palladian-style double-storeyed building with Corinthian columns, situated in an eight-acre plot, was built at a cost of Rs four lakh. The royal family later bought an adjacent six-acre plot from the Kapurthala Durbar. Since the main gate of the palace displays the royal insignia of two elephants carrying a conch, it was also referred to as the Hathiwali Kothi.
According to historians, the land was bought during the time of Mulam Thirunal Rama Varma but the construction of the building commenced during the time of Pooradam Tirunal Sethu Lakshmi Bayi in the 1920s. It was completed during the reign of Sree Chithira Tirunal, the last Maharajah from the 1930s.
Travancore House holds the reputation of being the first embassy of the erstwhile Union Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) in Delhi. Since 2005 it has been rented out for exhibitions and shows by galleries. The State Bank of Travancore and KELTRON have previously used the premises as their office space .
According to National Archives files, in 1949, when the integration of states with the Indian Union was happening, royal properties were categorised into two classes— private property of the ruler and state property. The state properties of princely rulers were handed over to respective state governments and it was at this time that the ownership of Travancore House in Delhi changed hands. As per documents, it was given to the local government (Thiru Kochi, which later in 1956 became Kerala), and not the Union government, said a historian familiar with Travancore family history. The National Archives files show that originally the Maharaja wished to keep Travancore House. However, this property along with some others were also given to the state, in return for higher allowances for members of his family. While the Kerala state government says that they own the property, the royal family’s contention is that they government only has possession and not ownership.
The Travancore royal family follows matrilineal succession in the female line. Mulam Tirunal had two nieces — Pooradam Tirunal Sethu Lakshmi Bayi (aka Senior Maharani who was the Regent 1924-1931) and Mulam Tirunal Sethu Parvathi Bayi (aka Junior Maharani). All current members of the royal family are descended from these two maharanis. And succession goes to the eldest male and females of both branches combined.
The current eldest male is Junior Maharani's grandson. Therefore he is the titular Maharaja. But the current eldest female is the Senior Maharani's granddaughter, who is the titular Maharani.
Kowdiar Palace represents only the Junior Maharani's branch. The Senior Maharani's branch is mainly based in Bangalore but has descendants living in Chennai and also in countries like Australia, Germany and the United States.
The current Maharani is Bharani Tirunal Rukmini Bayi (artist Rukmini Varma). Her eldest son is Rohini Tirunal Venugopal Varma, who is fourth in line for the titular Maharaja title, and is the person who has executed the sale deed for Travancore House as per reports.
The Travancore royal family has altogether 35 members. Kowdiar Palace, one of the branches, has seven members drawing lineage from the Junior Maharani's. The remaining 28 members are in the Senior Maharani's branch. The next titular Maharaja – Senior Maharani's grandson Revathi Tirunal Balagopal Varma – is from this branch.