The Kerala BJP is set to move into its newly constructed, state-of-the-art headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram after nearly a decade of anticipation.
Spanning 60,000sqft, the seven-storey building will be inaugurated by Union home minister Amit Shah at 11am on Saturday. The new facility will be the second-largest party office in the state after the CPM's AKG Centre — a nine-storey, solar-powered structure inaugurated in April by chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
The plan for the new headquarters began in 2017 when Shah, then BJP national president, initiated a drive for all state units to have offices in their name. Shah laid the foundation stone for the new office on June 3, 2017, following the demolition of the old Mararji Bhavan.
Despite an initial one-year completion target, delays caused by the pandemic, as well as licensing issues with the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation and the fire and rescue services, stalled progress.
C. Sivankutty, BJP leader and convener of the building committee, described the inauguration as a "long-term dream" coming true for BJP workers in Kerala.
"It was in 1999, a trust headed by then BJP president C.K. Padmanabhan purchased the property from IAS siblings S. Padmakumar and S. Krishnakumar’s family. There are rooms for all BJP office-bearers, including five suits for VVIPs, a conference hall with 400 seats, two board rooms, a media room, rooms for state general secretaries and feeder organisation presidents, a library, a help desk, a kitchen and a dining hall," said Sivankutty.
While the total construction cost remains undisclosed, sources estimate it at over ₹15 crore. The new office is not currently solar-enabled but has a rainwater harvesting system and a 2 lakh-litre water storage tank, suited to Kerala’s dual monsoon seasons.
Ahead of Shah’s visit, Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar announced a new list of office-bearers. The announcement has stirred internal unrest, with some members accusing Chandrasekhar of sidelining loyalists of former Union minister V. Muraleedharan.