‘The onus of protecting the building is with govt’

The (royal) family gave this property to the people of Baroda state. So, it logically fell under the category of “state properties”. It was not a residential place or a private office of the family. Therefore, the building naturally went to the state when India got Independence. This property is for the public and should remain with the public. For so many years, it was a court. As far as the legal ownership is concerned, we never owned the building or collected taxes from it. So there is no reason to go back on that. The sentiment is that these are public places, meant for a social purpose. As for the (royal) family, our coming into the picture does not arise. The government is the de-facto owner of the iconic building.

Read | Vadodara’s Nyaymandir building: Its fate hangs in balance

In what way do you think the building can be put to its best use?

The building is in a good shape and has a long history attached to it. The government needs to bring in the stakeholders, which are essentially the people of Vadodara. They must decide how best this building could be used. You cannot put up a government office just because it is there. The building can be refurbished with the CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) funds. Vadodara has a huge art fraternity. You can have a modern contemporary art museum. The hall is lovely, it can be used for holding special events. It can be opened up for people, who want to use it. You can also have a library. It is large and has a lot of space. It can also have a couple of cafes that can help to bring in revenue. The best example of a structure like this being reused is in New Delhi. The Rajasthan government has turned the Bikaner House into a modern space. Exhibitions and events are held there. It is generating revenue and also helps bring people for the events.

Have you made any suggestions to the administration?

They had made a suggestion asking us take over the building. They thought since we were running a museum, we might have more things to put up. But, it is not feasible. It is not just about taking over the property, but also running and maintaining it.

Is there any concern in the royal family that if the property is vacated and left unoccupied, it will be damaged?

The onus of protecting the property will lie with the government. The government will have to ensure that they devise a roadmap for the building so that the building does not decay… but it needs private partnership to use this kind of a space to its potential and maintain it. It must be refurbished and utilised in a way that the history is there for people to see and follow.