Raj Bhavan wants to break class barrier, can’t clear security hurdle

‘‘The Raj Bhavan has VVIPs as visitors, so it would be wrong to allow just any person to enter,’’ said a senior police official. The problem is that once a membership card is issued, no one will be able to stop the holder from entering the Raj Bhavan whenever they want, the official elaborated.

The Raj Bhavan has been flooded with around 500 inquiries for membership of the club since its inauguration, not only from senior state Cabinet members and top bureaucrats but also leading industrialists, politicians and businessmen.

At the inauguration of the club, built in just six months by the Public Works Department at a cost of Rs 1 crore, Fazal had reiterated that its membership would be open to people from all walks of life.

Raj Bhavan Officer on Special Duty U R Kashikar declined to comment, but said that membership enrollment will commence once the norms for membership have been finalised. ‘‘We have received a large number of calls. We are working out the modalities,’’ said Sumit Malik, Secretary to the Governor.

Meanwhile, the Raj Bhavan administration has sought information from other Mumbai clubs about their membership fees and services.

The club will not be subsidised by the government but will raise funds from membership fees to run day-to-day administration.