Rs 4.35 crore tax notice received by Anand Bhawan, Jawaharlal Nehru’s ancestral home

The iconic
Anand Bhawan, Swaraj Bhawan and Jawahar Planetarium in Prayagraj, have been
served a notice of Rs 4.35 crore as house tax by the Prayagraj Municipal
Corporation (PMC).

Anand Bhawan
and Swaraj Bhawan have been home to the Nehru family.

The Swaraj
Bhawan now serves as a museum of memorable moments related to the Nehru family
while Anand Bhawan is also a museum, showcasing various artifacts and articles
of the era of Independence movement in India.

The three
buildings are maintained by the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, a charitable
trust headed by Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

According to
PMC officials, the notice has been served on the basis that Anand Bhawan and
the adjoining buildings are being used for commercial purposes and hence
enhanced house tax is payable.

P K Mishra,
chief tax assessment officer, Prayagraj Municipal Corporation, said, “Around two
weeks ago, we had sent a house tax notice on Anand Bhawan, Swaraj Bhawan and
Jawahar Planetarium. In reply, we have received a letter from N Balakrishnan,
the administrative secretary of the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund in Delhi.
The letter has been forwarded to the Zonal Office (four) with instructions to
carry out a detailed survey and submit a report regarding the total pending
dues. Further decision would be taken after receiving the report.”

Mayor
Abhilasha Gupta said a letter had been received from Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial
Fund in New Delhi with a request to review the commercial tax charge on Anand
Bhawan and the adjoining complexes since they are heritage buildings.

“The related
files and documents will now be studied before taking further steps in this
direction,” the Mayor said.