Madhya Pradesh heritage building Minto hall renamed after BJP icon

Minto Hall was constructed in 1909 by Nawab Sultan Jahan Begum. The fourth and the last begum of Bhopal named the heritage building as ‘Minto Hall’ to felicitate Lord Minto, the then Viceroy of India

Updated on: Nov 27, 2021, 01:59:15 IST

By Shruti Tomar, Bhopal:

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Madhya Pradesh chief minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday announced that popular heritage building Minto Hall in Bhopal will be named after BJP’s founder member late Kushabhau Thakre.

Minto Hall in Bhopal was used as the state legislative assembly hall after India gained independence. (HT archive)

Addressing BJP leaders in a state executive committee meeting, Chouhan said: “It’s our land, our soil, our stone, our building and hard work of our labourer but name is of Minto. Many MLAs reached this assembly with the contribution of Thakre ji. Thakre ji empowered the party [BJP] in MP so now it will be named after Thakre.”

Minto Hall was constructed in 1909 by Nawab Sultan Jahan Begum. The fourth and the last begum of Bhopal named the heritage building as ‘Minto Hall’ to felicitate Lord Minto, the then Viceroy of India. Minto Hall was used as the state legislative assembly hall after India gained independence. The hall was renovated in 2018 as a convention centre and has a restaurant and bar. BJP state president VD Sharma said the Hall would be developed as per ideology of Thakre, including the closure of the bar.

A historian from Bhopal, Rizwan Uddin Ansari said, “BJP leaders can’t change the history so they are changing the name. The building has a heritage importance and very popular for unique architecture which is fusion of Nawabi culture and British colonial era. Will they change the architecture too because that will also remind us about British and Nawabs? ” he asked.

(With agency inputs)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shruti Tomar
I have spent over a decade chronicling Madhya Pradesh’s political and social landscape, covering politics, investigative journalism, crime, human interest, and government policy, blending sharp insight with ground‑level depth. I have closely tracked three assembly elections, three Lok Sabha elections, leadership transitions in MP while exposing governance lapses, tender irregularities, and flawed policy rollouts. My reports have revealed gaps in the Cheetah project, irregularities in medical education, rigging in recruitment exams, and loopholes in policy implementation. In crime reporting, I have moved beyond FIRs to map systemic patterns — from organised crime networks and gender‑based violence to custodial accountability — balancing urgency with sensitivity. My journalism is defined by a commitment to human interest. I have profiled the marginalised Bancchda community, documented atrocities against tribal groups, and highlighted efforts to preserve their culture through heritage liquor and revival of spiritual practices. I have reported on farmers struggling with failed MSP promises, giving voice to those often reduced to statistics in policy files. Passionate about field reporting, I have reported on rampant sand mining in Chambal and Narmada, pharmaceutical companies supplying medicines under altered names, the dire condition of schools and colleges, the plight of commercial sex workers, and skewed sex ratios in specific districts. Beyond deadlines, and as HT’s state correspondent and assistant editor in Madhya Pradesh, I engage with ministers, farmers, students, and activists, believing the best policy stories begin with a single human voice. A postgraduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, I also hold a diploma in sports journalism.Read More

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