SC to hear suo motu case over relocation of 135-year-old Central Secretariat Library

You don’t have any Active Subscription.

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

Supreme Court. File | Photo Credit: S. Subramanium

The Supreme Court has taken suo motu cognisance of the proposed relocation of the 135-year-old Central Secretariat Library, which reportedly has not been allocated space in the Central Vista redevelopment plan despite being one of the country’s oldest government libraries.

The court’s intervention comes amid reports that the library, housed in the Shastri Bhawan complex, was directed on September 17 to vacate the premises by September 30 as part of the redevelopment project.

The matter will be heard on Monday (October 5, 2026) by a Bench of Justices Sanjay Kumar and Sanjeev Sachdeva.

“The competent authority [the Chief Justice of India] has been pleased to direct the registration of a fresh suo motu writ petition,” a note issued by the Supreme Court Registry while listing the matter states.

The case, titled ‘In Re: 135-Yr-Old Library 8.5 Lakh Books– And No Room In The New Central Vista Plan’, was registered on October 3.

The Central Public Works Department issued the September 17 order directing the Central Secretariat Library, along with other Ministries functioning from Shastri Bhawan, to remove all furniture, electronic equipment and other items, and hand over vacant possession of the premises for demolition and reconstruction work.

Spread over four floors and nearly 5,500 sq. m. of Shastri Bhawan, the Central Secretariat Library houses more than 8.5 lakh books, including rare volumes, official records and gazetteers, which are regularly accessed by government officials, and students preparing for competitive examinations.

Established in 1891, the library was originally situated in what was then Calcutta, and was known as the Imperial Secretariat Library. Following the decision in 1911 to shift the capital of British India to Delhi, the library was moved to the Old Secretariat Building in Civil Lines. It was later shifted to North Block, and subsequently to Shastri Bhawan, where it has remained since 1969.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, however, responded to reports that no space had been provided for the Central Secretariat Library, saying in an October 1 post on social media platform X: “Contrary to a few reports, it is clarified that space for the Central Secretariat Library has been provided for in the Kartavya Path redevelopment plan. The necessary process for construction of the library is underway.”

The Ministry did not disclose where the library would be housed under the redevelopment plan.

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.