Appearing before the Estate Officer of the Union government’s Land and Development Office (L&DO) on Friday in connection with the eviction proceedings for Sujan Singh Park North, the real estate firm that runs the prime residential and commercial complex in New Delhi challenged the Centre’s notice, saying it has not breached the lease.
The Estate Officer had on June 11 issued an eviction notice under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971, to the real estate firm, Sir Sobha Singh and Sons Pvt. Ltd. The notice had stated the company had breached the 1945 lease and the lease had been “re-entered”, or terminated, in 1960.
Since then, the notice said, the company was in unauthorised occupation of the property, which includes residential flats as well as Ambassador Hotel.
The company was asked to appear before the Estate Officer on Friday.
In the representation to the Estate Officer, the company’s general manager Col SP Sharma (retired) argued that the re-entry in 1960 was ‘invalid and inoperative’, adding that there was ‘no breach, no valid notice, or opportunity to remedy, no permission of the Chief Commissioner, and no possession was ever taken’.
Shaunak Kashyap, advocate of Sir Sobha Singh and Sons, said the government had alleged that the lease was breached by the construction of the Hotel Block and laundry block.
“We led copious evidence over 108 exhibits, sanction maps, interrogatories, evidence to establish it was built with their sanction and active participation,” he said.
The firm also submitted a map sanctioned by the New Delhi Municipal Committee (NDMC) in 1951 that included the hotel block. The next hearing before the Estate Officer is scheduled on July 3.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) did not respond to a request for comment on Friday’s proceedings.
The British Indian government had given the 7.58-acre land on perpetual lease to the company in 1945 to construct 100 flats. During the course of World War II, the flats were to be used by the government to house military officials, after which it was to give 50% of the flats to the company, while retaining 50% for its own officials to use.
Legal disputes over breaches and payment of ground rent have been ongoing between the two for decades. On 30 April, L&DO issue a demand notice seeking Rs 940 crore in payment for breach of lease conditions.
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