From the beginning of British rule in the sub-continent to the end of the last decade, the building and its premises has played host to major political, social, literary and cultural meetings.
It witnessed the rebellion in 1930, when an armoury in Chittagong was raided, and the detention and subsequent release of the ‘rebels’.
It is also where the non-cooperation movement began in the region.
The poles are on the verge of collapse while the doors are barely in place. The stairs are falling apart and the tin-shade roof also needs replacement. Calls are being made for repairs for a long time, but the Chittagong Association or other government organisations have not yet taken any step.
Chittagong Association leaders said works on restoring the site is at a standstill after the death of many of its forerunners.
A meeting has been called on Friday to rework the association committee.
The building was named after Jatra Mohan Sengupta - a lawyer and politician during British rule. Historians say he took part in laying the foundation of the protest against British rule.
Writer Abdul Haq Choudhury said in 'Bandar Shahar Chattagram' that the Chittagong Association and a board of trustees was put together by Jatra Mohan Sengupta, who was a leader of the India National Congress.
Jatra Mohan Sengupta died, however, while it was still being built, in Dec 2, 1919. Rai Bahadur Nabinchandra Datta then opened the hall on Feb 8 next year.
His son Jatindra Mohan Sengupta, a revolutionary against the British rule, then renamed the establishment in memory of his father. It has been acutely linked with with local movements since.
According to 'Hajar Bochhorer Chattagram', a book published by Dainik Azadi on their 35th anniversary, Congress called for the non-cooperation movement in 1920 at a special session in Kolkata where the leading figures from Chittagong were also present.
On his return from the session, Jatindra Mohan Sengupta called for a strike in a meeting at the hall. The blueprint for the Chittagong-wide mobilisation of the protest was also prepared at the assembly under the then chair Maniruzzaman Islamabadi.
A harrowing turn of events followed as British police opened fire on defenceless tea-garden workers at Chandpur dock.
It stirred up a response from railway workers who called a strike from Assam Bengal Railway headquarters Chittagong to Chandpur.
"After the railway authorities ordered the protesting labourers to leave the quarters, they set up tents around JM Sen Hall and nearby areas," Anupam Sen said.
Muhammad Shamsul Haq, editor of tradition and culture magazine 'Itihasher Khosra', said the revolutionaries involved in the armoury raid in Chittagong also frequented the hall.
Awami League's women wing held a meeting there during the no-cooperation movement on Mar 9, 1971.
The Hall needs urgent renovation to see the light of a brighter day.