Delhi Gymkhana club eviction row: Delhi High Court issues notice to Center

The Delhi High Court on Monday asked the Center to respond to petitions filed by the Delhi Gymkhana Club and its Employees Welfare Association against the eviction proceedings initiated at the centenary club’s premises in Lutyens’ Delhi.

The petitions challenge a June 29 notice issued by the estate manager under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorized Occupants) Act, 1971. The notice asked the club to explain why an eviction order should not be issued, saying its continued occupation of the 27.3-acre plot on Safdarjung Road amounted to “unauthorized occupation of land on Safdarjung Road”.

The High Court issued a notice to the Center and listed the matter for hearing on July 28.

According to the Centre, the club’s lease expired on May 22, after which the club exercised its right of re-entry under the lease. The government argued that the land was needed for defense infrastructure, public safety, governance infrastructure and other public purpose projects.

The June 29 notice also warned that if the club did not respond by July 7, the eviction proceedings could proceed ex parte.

A long legal battle

The latest proceedings are part of an ongoing dispute between the Center and one of Delhi’s oldest and most exclusive private clubs.

On 22 May, the Lands and Development Authority (L&DO) ordered the club to vacate the premises by 5 June, citing the “public purpose” clause in the original lease. The club subsequently approached the Delhi High Court to challenge the government’s decision.

At an earlier hearing, the center had assured the court that it would not carry out a forcible eviction and would proceed in accordance with the Public Spaces Act, including prior notice. Based on this assurance, the Supreme Court refused to issue the government’s stay notification.

The dispute later spread to the neighboring Jaipur Polo Ground. Hearing a related case, the court questioned the Centre’s move to reclaim open spaces in Lutyens’ Delhi and expressed concern over the dwindling green cover in the national capital. However, after the government took physical possession of the Jaipur Polo Ground in June, the court refused to issue a stay on its use.

Founded in 1913, the Delhi Gymkhana Club is among the capital’s most prestigious private institutions, and its members have long included senior bureaucrats, military officers, diplomats and business leaders.

The outcome of the case could determine whether the Center can move forward with reclaiming one of New Delhi’s most prominent properties for public projects it has proposed.