The Hall was named after the well-known freedom fighter and first lady Governor of a state in Independent India, Mrs. Sarojni Naidu. Bareda Sundari Devi, Sarojni, who called herself a “poetess-singer” , was born on 13 February 1879 at Hyderabad. A pioneer in education, her father Mr. Aghornath Chattopadadhyaya was also a linguist, a crusader and an original thinker. She passed her matriculation at the age of 12, coming out first in the Madras Presidency.

After a gap of three years, she resumed her academic life first at the King’s College, London and then at Girton College, Cambridge.

Sarojni Naidu, Annie Basent and C.P. Ramaswamy Aiyer lectured all over India on welfare of youth, dignity of labour, women’s emancipation and nationalism. The visit of Mrs. Sarojni Naidu on January 6, 1917 to Aligarh was an event of great importance.

She delivered a lecture at the Strachey Hall. The spell of her talk on the audience was broken when she finished. Her theme was “The glories of Islam and Hindu-Muslim Enmity”. She concluded her lecture with the words ‘I ask you first and ask you last and the only thing I ask you, Hindus and Muslims, is to remain united’.

To commemorate her visit, Nawab Ishaq Khan, Honorary Secretary of the M.A.O. College announced an annual donation of a collection of books in the Students’ Union Library, to be known as ‘Mrs. Sarojni Naidu Collection’. Sarojni Naidu Hall was established in August 1970. The initial strength of the Hall was 180, which has risen to 1747 at present. Apart from the main residential building, there are four annexes as given below: