Delhi HC seeks Centre’s response on pleas challenging Gymkhana Club eviction notice

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday issued notice to the Union government on applications filed by a member of the Delhi Gymkhana Club and the Club’s Staff Welfare Association challenging the Centre’s show cause notice seeking their eviction from the historic Lutyens’ Delhi premises.

A single-judge Bench of Justice Avneesh Jhingan sought the Centre’s response and posted the matter for further hearing on July 28 after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing virtually for the Centre, sought time to file a reply, stating that the applications had been served only a day earlier.

Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma also appeared for the Centre, while senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Jayant Mehta represented the applicants.

The applications have been filed by Delhi Gymkhana Club member Vijay Khurana and the Club’s Staff Welfare Association in the already pending civil suits challenging the Centre’s move to reclaim possession of the Colonial-era club premises.

The latest development followed a show cause notice issued by the Estate Officer of the Land and Development Office (L&DO) after the Union government initiated steps to evict the occupants from the Club’s premises at 2, Safdarjung Road.

Earlier, the Delhi High Court had declined to grant interim relief against the Centre’s move to reclaim possession of the Delhi Gymkhana Club premises in Lutyens’ Delhi.

While issuing summons in the civil suits filed by a club member and the Staff Welfare Association, Justice Jhingan had refused to stay the Centre’s communication after SG Mehta assured the court that no forcible eviction would be carried out and that any action would be taken strictly in accordance with law and after prior notice.

The Delhi High Court had observed that there was nothing on record at that stage to indicate that proceedings under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act had been initiated, adding that the petitioners would be at liberty to avail appropriate legal remedies if required.

According to the impugned communication issued by the L&DO, the 27.3-acre property is “critically required for the strengthening and securing of Defence infrastructure and other vital public security purposes”.

The notice invokes Clause 4 of the perpetual lease deed, under which the lessor reserves the right to re-enter the premises if required for a public purpose.

Established in 1913 during the Colonial era, the Delhi Gymkhana Club is one of India’s oldest and most prestigious social institutions, with around 5,600 permanent members and a long waiting list.

Its present premises were developed in the early 1930s by architect Robert T. Russell, who also designed Connaught Place and the erstwhile Commander-in-Chief’s residence, later known as Teen Murti House.

IANS