US’s Mumbai home was Gujarat prince’s palace

Priceless property sold for pittance

Nayan Dave| TNN | Mar 29, 2008

WANKANER (RAJKOT): Digvijaysinh Zala, former Union environment minister and scion of the erstwhile Wankaner royalty near Rajkot, regrets that his ancestors sold a priceless property in Mumbai for what seems like pittance today.Wondering which property? If you ever applied for a US visa from western India, you have visited this property. The other name for the American consulate at Mumbai is Wankaner House. Spread over 10,000 square yards with a swimming pool, tennis courts and garden, this grand colonial building was constructed in 1930 by Wankaner royalty, the late Amarsinhji Zala. After his death, his son Pratapsinhji sold it to the American government for Rs 18 crore in 1957. Today, the land alone is worth more than Rs 800 crore. Given its heritage value and the fact that it is situated right in the heart of south Mumbai, it is impossible to know its exact value today. The Wankaner prince developed another precious property 'Amar Building' on Firozsha Mehta Marg, which houses Reserve Bank of India's foreign exchange department. The eight-storeyed building was also sold in the same year for Rs 19 crore.Digvijaysinh, who is the grandson of Amarsinhji says: "I feel like a poor farmer presenting a precious gift to the richest and most powerful man of the world. We had sold Wankaner House as it was difficult for us to maintain such a huge property and pay the hefty taxes to the municipal corporation. We got a reasonable price at that time, but had we held on to it, we would have reaped returns beyond our imagination." Kesarisinh, Digvijaysinh's son who is studying in UK and is vacationing in Wankaner now, adds: "On the one hand I feel proud that my great-grandfather developed such priceless properties in Mumbai, on the other I feel bad about losing a home in one of the most posh localities in Mumbai. Circumstances coupled with ill-advice forced my grandfather to sell the properties then." But it seems Wankaner house has not lost its Gujarat connection even today. Of the 1,500 visa applications the consulate processes every day, nearly 70 per cent are Gujaratis!

An old picture of Wankaner House in Mumbai

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Priceless-property-sold-for-pittance/articleshow/2908542.cms