Writers' Building

Designed by architect Thomas Lyon, the Writers' Building was constructed in 1777 on behalf of Richard Barwell during the tenure of Governor-General Warren Hastings. Built on the site of the former St. Anne's Church and early colonial hospital, the original three-storey building was designed as living quarters and offices for junior clerks ('writers') employed by the East India Company. Over the next century, as British authority expanded across the subcontinent, the structure underwent massive architectural expansions. In the 1880s, under Lieutenant Governor Sir Ashley Eden, the building received its distinctive red terracotta brick facing, French Renaissance pediments, and classical Greco-Roman porticos.

The Writers' Building holds a central place in the history of the Indian independence movement. On December 8, 1930, three young revolutionaries—Benoy Basu, Badal Gupta, and Dinesh Gupta—disguised themselves in European attire, entered the secretariat, and assassinated the oppressive British Inspector General of Prisons, Lieutenant Colonel N.S. Simpson, in his second-floor office corridor. Following a fierce gun battle with British police, Badal swallowed potassium cyanide, while Benoy and Dinesh shot themselves to avoid capture. The historic plaza surrounding the building was later renamed B.B.D. Bagh in their honor. Following Independence in 1947, Writers' Building served as the seat of the West Bengal State Government and Chief Minister's secretariat until 2013, when departments were temporarily relocated to Nabanna for a massive heritage restoration project.

The ghost lore of the Writers' Building is deeply linked to its violent colonial history, revolutionary gunfights, and centuries of administrative secrecy.

The most prominent legend surrounds the spirit of Inspector General N.S. Simpson. According to long-standing tales shared by night guards, caretakers, and government clerks, the spectral figure of Colonel Simpson is reportedly seen pacing the long, vacant second-floor corridor near Block 5 late at night. Local urban folklore claims that around midnight, the faint sound of rapid gunshots, frantic shouting in British English, and running boots echo down the empty tiled hallways, reenacting the traumatic moments of the 1930 assassination. Night guards refuse to walk near the corridor alone after 10:00 PM without carrying torches and protective charms, believing the spirit remains restless and forever trapped in its tragic final moments in the historic building.

Another enduring legend involves the old East India Company records rooms and subterranean vaults beneath the central plaza. Clerks and night watchmen speak of ghostly British 'writers' dressed in 18th-century attire who continue to shuffle yellowed paperwork, scrape quills across wooden desks, and whisper in dark, unlit corners after the official workday ends. The sheer size of the sprawling complex—containing over 300 rooms, long shadowy corridors, and deserted interior courtyards—naturally amplified these ghostly tales across generations of state government employees, solidifying its place in Kolkata's folklore.

Night security guards, maintenance workers, and late-working government employees at the Writers' Building have reported a consistent array of paranormal encounters over the past century. The most common report involves hearing footsteps echoing down empty, polished corridors when all office chambers are locked and vacant. Security personnel patrolling the second floor near the Chief Minister's old wing report sudden, chilling drops in temperature and an oppressive sense of being watched from dark doorways.

Night watchmen have repeatedly claimed to hear typewriter keys clacking, doors slamming, and disembodied voices speaking in English and Bengali inside locked departments. Several maintenance staff working on night shifts during the ongoing restoration project reported seeing shadowy human figures in period attire moving through the grand central staircases, only for the figures to vanish when flashlight beams were directed at them. These persistent reports led many night workers to avoid patrolling certain isolated wings alone after dark.

The Writers' Building is an architectural tour de force spanning 150 metres along the northern bank of Lal Dighi pond in B.B.D. Bagh. Covering over 550,000 square feet of built-up area across multiple interconnected blocks, the three-storey complex is built in French Renaissance and Greco-Roman revival styles.

The facade features exposed red-brick cladding, impressive Corinthian columns, and a central pediment topped with allegorical statues sculpted by William Fredric Madsen representing Commerce, Justice, Science, and Agriculture. The interior layout consists of endless double-loaded corridors, central open courtyards, marble staircases, and cavernous high-ceilinged office chambers that reflect its heritage significance and administrative grandeur.

The Writers' Building is located in the heart of B.B.D. Bagh (Dalhousie Square), Central Kolkata, easily accessible via B.B.D. Bagh Bus Terminus, Howrah Station, or Chandni Chowk Metro Station. The grand red-brick facade and surrounding plaza can be freely viewed and photographed from public streets around Lal Dighi during daylight hours.

Because the building remains a highly secure government secretariat and heritage site currently undergoing restoration, public entry into the interior chambers is strictly restricted to authorized government personnel, official visitors, and special heritage tour pass holders. Tourists can admire its grand architecture from the lakefront promenade and surrounding public walkways.

The reputation of Writers' Building as a haunted landmark is driven by its 240-year colonial history, the dramatic 1930 revolutionary assassination of Inspector General Simpson, and its vast, maze-like layout of cavernous halls and dark corridors. The combination of political violence, colonial authority, and late-night quiet creates an unforgettable atmosphere in Kolkata's historic center, attracting urban historians, researchers, and ghost story enthusiasts.