Royalty, history and famous trials: Justice Poonam Bamba writes book on Patiala House Court

Former Delhi High Court judge Justice Poonam Bamba has written a coffee table book on the history of the Patiala House Court..Justice Bamba, who served three stints as a trial court judge at the Patiala House Court, says that the court complex located at the iconic India Gate Circle gives judges a 'regal' feeling.In this interview with Bar & Bench’s Prashant Jha, Justice Bamba discusses the inspiration behind the book, the simple yet mesmerising architecture of Patiala House, and how a palace turned into a 'seat of justice'..Prashant Jha (PJ): How did the idea for the book come about?.Justice Poonam Bamba: I had three stints at Patiala House. First as Additional Sessions Judge, then Special Judge (CBI) and finally in 2017, as the District & Sessions Judge. I was always mesmerised by the charm and beauty of Patiala House. In 2017, when I was posted as District & Sessions Judge here, I closely experienced its vibrant energy. I felt very royal sitting in the District Judge’s courtroom. People say It used to be a ballroom when Patiala House was a palace. It truly has an aura of royalty. I wanted people to see this beauty and experience its charm through my eyes. That is when I thought of writing the coffee table book..PJ: Can you tell us about the history of the Patiala House Court? How did a palace turn into a court complex?.Justice Bamba: After the British shifted their capital from Calcutta to Delhi in 1911, all the Maharajas were inducted into the Chambers of Princes, a forum where they could voice their aspirations. For Maharajas to have a place of stay when they came to Delhi to attend Chambers meetings, the British provided plot of land to each of them to construct their palaces. A plot was allotted to the Maharaja of Patiala on which Patiala House was constructed by Maharaja Yadavindra, son of Maharaja Bhupendra Singh. But, it was rarely used by the Maharajas for their stay. Rather, it came to be used for various other purposes. After independence, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Gobind Ballabh Pant, Firoze Gandhi, Pilloo Mody and others would casually drop in here for informal chats. The World Health Organization (WHO) also had its office here. After Partition, the Maharaja allowed many migrants to stay in this palace. Amrita Pritam too lived here for some time.In the late 1960s, the Delhi High Court moved here. That is how this palace turned into a seat of justice. The High Court was here for a decade. Back then, the New Delhi courts were running from Parliament Street. When the High Court moved to its current location in 1976, the lawyers demanded that Patiala House be allowed to be used for the New Delhi courts. It was not a full district court back then. It started with only a few magistrates and as far as I recollect, two additional sessions judges..PJ: How long did it take to write the book? Please tell us a bit about the research..Justice Bamba: It has taken me almost seven years to collate all the material. It was never a very planned or structured thing. I just knew that I wanted to write a coffee table book about the Patiala House.Most of the clippings in the book are from Nehru Memorial Library. Documents were sourced from national archives. The book contains interviews of the senior members of the bar, judges, anecdotes from people who worked there, members of the Patiala royal family, and many others..PJ: I am sure several important trials were held in the Patiala House Court. You have a different section in the book on those trials. Can you discuss some of the important cases ?.Justice Bamba: One of the most interesting cases which comes to mind is the Nagarwala case. RS Nagarwala could mimic anyone. The story goes that he called up Ved Prakash Malhotra, Chief Cashier of the State Bank of India, imitating Indira Gandhi's voice and said he needed ₹60 lakh urgently. It was a big amount back then. Malhotra was told to bring the cash, for which he would be given a cheque immediately.He withdrew the cash from the vault of the bank and handed over the money to a person, but never got the cheque. He kept waiting and did rounds of Mrs Gandhi’s bungalow. He even reached Parliament House, but was shooed away. He then realised that he had been cheated and the matter was reported to the police. Later, most of the amount was recovered.Even Phoolan Devi's murder case was tried in the Patiala House Court.As District & Sessions Judge, I also was a designated Nationa Investigation Agency (NIA) judge when I dealt with the High Court bomb blast case.The Uphaar Cinema and Sarojini Nagar Bomb blast cases were also tried in Patiala House..PJ: Can you tell us what is so unique about the architecture of Patiala House?.Justice Bamba: This palace is built in a simple style in pristine white, brick and mortar. Maharaja Bhupinder Singh, a person of flamboyance, had visualised a great palace. But the palace could not be built in his lifetime. His son Yadavindra Singh (father of Captain Amarinder Singh) seemingly did not inherit his father’s lifestyle. He built the palace in a simple fashion.Unlike other palaces that you find here, Patiala House is simple in style and architecture. Yet, it looks as beautiful as any other building in its vicinity.The other unique feature, if you look carefully, is the peacock motif throughout the complex. The floor design, the grills, the railings, and stair rails, are adorned with peacock design. Interestingly, peacocks still frequent Patiala House. Other architectural features are jaalis, chhatris, continuous chhajja, etc..PJ: How can we protect Patiala House Court as a heritage building while keeping the courts here running?.Justice Bamba: We have always kept in mind its heritage status, whenever any development was undertaken. One of the reasons that Patiala House has been preserved as well as it has, is that courts are being held there. The place has been very well maintained till now..PJ: Finally, when is the book going to be released?.Justice Bamba: On May 28. Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, along with Acting Chief Justice Manmohan will be launching the book. Justice Manmohan has been a great support and encouraged me throughout the process.