Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna Searching For “Missing” Family Home

India-West News Desk

NEW DELHI – Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna, newly appointed as the Chief Justice of India, is on a personal quest to find his “missing” ancestral home in Amritsar, a house built by his grandfather Sarav Dayal in the pre-Independence era. Sources close to Khanna told NDTV that during his visits to Amritsar, he routinely stops by Katra Sher Singh, a place that holds deep sentimental value for him. Although the area has transformed over time, Khanna remains determined to locate the house his grandfather constructed.

Sarav Dayal, Khanna’s grandfather and the father of renowned Justice HR Khanna, was a celebrated lawyer of his era and served on the Congress committee investigating the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in 1919. Around that time, Dayal purchased two homes: one near Jallianwala Bagh in Katra Sher Singh, Amritsar, and another in Dalhousie, Himachal Pradesh. It is the Amritsar home that Khanna seeks to find, said NDTV.

The Katra Sher Singh house endured significant challenges; it was desecrated and set ablaze during the upheaval of 1947 but was later restored by Khanna’s grandfather. Khanna recalls visiting the house at age five with his father and remembers a sign that read “Bauji,” or “Grandfather,” which is now displayed at their Dalhousie home. Following Sarav Dayal’s death, the Amritsar house was sold in 1970, yet it continues to live vividly in Khanna’s memory. Each time he visits Amritsar, he retraces his steps in Katra Sher Singh, hoping to reconnect with his family’s legacy.