CJI Khanna Traces Roots to Ancestral Home in Amritsar’s Katra Sher Singh

Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna is on a personal quest to locate his “missing” ancestral home in Amritsar, built by his grandfather, Sarav Dayal, during the pre-Independence era.

Justice Khanna, who was sworn in today as the 51st Chief Justice of India, considers his visits to Katra Sher Singh, Amritsar, almost like a pilgrimage. Although the area has transformed over time, he continues to search for the house his grandfather once built.

Sarav Dayal, a distinguished lawyer and father of the esteemed Justice HR Khanna, was a prominent figure of his time and served on the Congress committee formed in response to the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre. He owned two properties—one near Jallianwala Bagh in Katra Sher Singh, Amritsar, and another in Dalhousie, Himachal Pradesh. Justice Khanna’s focus is on locating the house in Katra Sher Singh.

In 1947, during the Partition, this home was desecrated and set on fire but was later restored. Chief Justice Khanna visited the house once as a young boy, remembering the sign reading “Bauji” (meaning “Grandfather”) at the entrance, which now remains at their Dalhousie home. After Sarav Dayal’s death, the Amritsar property was sold in 1970.

These memories have stayed with Justice Khanna, who recalls how his grandfather discouraged him from bringing school books during holidays, believing that the lessons he would impart were beyond what could be learned from textbooks.