Who owns Delhi’s Connaught Place? Check owner, rent and other details here

Connaught Place, or CP as Delhiites fondly call it, isn’t just a market it is a symbol of the city’s soul. Whether it is shopping for the latest brands, grabbing a coffee with friends, or simply walking through its white-pillared corridors, CP has been a go-to destination for generations. But have you ever wondered who actually owns this grand piece of Delhi?

Let’s rewind to the beginning. Connaught Place was built by the British in 1929 and was designed by architect Robert Tor Russell. The layout, with its iconic circle and radial roads, was inspired by Georgian architecture in Britain. Connaught Place got its name from Prince Arthur, the Duke of Connaught, a member of the British royal family. He was the third son of Queen Victoria and the uncle of King George VI. Prince Arthur visited India in 1921, and the market was later named in his honor during the British rule.

Who owns CP?

Today, CP stands as one of the most expensive and high-demand commercial real estate areas in India. But beneath the modern buzz lies an ownership story deeply rooted in history.

Connaught Place is divided into multiple blocks, and each block has its own set of owners. While the land and overall management of Connaught Place fall under the Government of India, the buildings that make up CP are owned by various individuals and families. the individual shops and buildings are a different story.

Back in the day, many of the early shops were set up by traders who originally operated from the Kashmere Gate area. Some of the well-known names include Harnarain Gopinath (also known as Harnarains), Kanter’s, Galgotia, and Snowhite. Some families managed to rent multiple shops, even as many as 50.

Connaught Place rent

Today, the rent in Connaught Place ranges between Rs. 300 to Rs. 700 per square foot per month. But things were very different before independence. Back then, most of these properties were rented out at extremely low rates—sometimes for just a few hundred rupees a month.

Because of the Old Delhi Rent Control Act, the rent for many of these properties was only allowed to increase marginally that is around 10 per cent of the original price. This means that even today, some shop owners pay extremely low rent, while the actual value of the property has skyrocketed.

As a result, many of the buildings in CP are still owned by private families who have passed them down through generations. The facades may look British, the rent may seem stuck in a bygone era, but the buzz is entirely modern.

Today, Connaught Place is a vibrant hub — packed with restaurants, showrooms, offices, and tourists. It represents a rare blend of colonial charm and urban energy, and its ownership reflects Delhi’s layered history: part government-controlled, part family legacy.

So the next time you’re sipping chai in the inner circle or browsing books at a vintage shop, just remember — CP isn’t just a market. It’s a piece of living history.

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