With unending pictures of Congress’ legacy lined on the walls, one after the other, the party’s new five-storeyed headquarters or the Indira Bhawan is a humongous mix of archaic and modern architecture.
“This building is spread across an area spanning 2100 metre square,” said All India Congress Committee (AICC) treasurer Ajay Maken, further adding that the building cost over Rs 200 crore in construction.
Maken said the government allotted the land to the party on November 19, 2007.
Congress party’s new headquarters “Indira Bhawan” has been built on the foundation of Democracy, Nationalism, Secularism, Inclusive Development and Social Justice.
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) January 15, 2025
Symbolising the 140-year-old glorious history of the Indian National Congress, the walls here narrate the great… pic.twitter.com/6rzubN0B3f
Indira Bhawan has multiple meeting rooms and a conference hall accommodating a capacity of around 276 people. Separate spaces are provided to the members of the Mahila Congress, the Youth Congress and other secretaries and chairpersons. The latticed roof lights up the lobby with natural daylight.
“The building is surrounded by 134 trees, 8,675 plants, and displays 264 artworks and paintings,” Maken pointed out while addressing the first press conference held there on Saturday. The Bhawan operates on solar power and thus keeps a “responsible” approach towards the environment, he said.
Maken also stressed the historical importance of some paintings, including works by Nandlal Bose created for the Haripura Congress session in 1938 at Mahatma Gandhi’s request. “Gandhi believed in combining art with politics, and this building portrays that idea,” he remarked. Another tall wall lays out front-page archives of various newspapers featuring the announcement of an independent India.
The foundation for Indira Bhawan was laid in 2009, and the place has been named in honour of the influential Congress leader and former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
Laying stress on the need for a democratic society to have a “strong opposition,” Maken explained that Indira Bhawan, with its latest technology and better infrastructure, represents this principle.
The fifth storey in the Bhawan, however, is still being arranged. The place might require some time to become fully operational before the office is entirely relocated from Akbar Road.
