Union Home Minister Amit Shah laid the foundation stone for the new Maharashtra headquarters of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in South Mumbai on Monday, marking a significant milestone in the party’s organisational expansion in the state. The ceremony was held at Vasani Chambers, a 1,377.79 sq m plot near Nirmala Niketan and Churchgate railway station, in the presence of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and senior BJP leaders.
The upcoming multi-storey office is expected to serve as the central hub for BJP’s Maharashtra operations. Party officials stated that the building will feature advanced security systems, including biometric access, digital controls, and modern communication infrastructure, reflecting the party’s growing presence and technological integration.
However, the event was not without controversy. Opposition leaders, including NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar and Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut, raised concerns over the legality of the land acquisition. They alleged that the property was originally leased to the Maharashtra State Housing Finance Corporation on a 99-year term and was later sold by a private builder without proper lease renewal. Raut claimed that the land was reserved for residential use and questioned the speed of approvals granted by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
In response, BJP office-bearers asserted that all legal procedures were followed during the acquisition and that the party remains committed to transparency.
The foundation-laying ceremony comes ahead of the 2029 Maharashtra Assembly elections and is seen as a strategic move to bolster the BJP’s infrastructure and visibility in the state.
