New Delhi, The Delhi High Court on Wednesday said it will hear on November 19 lawsuits over Centre’s proceedings against the Delhi Gymkhana Club for its eviction from the 27.3-acre premises on Safdarjung Road here.
The court was hearing two separate lawsuits filed by Gymkhana member Vijay Khurana and Delhi Gymkhana Club Ltd Staff Welfare Association. The lawsuit filed by the Gymkhana staff has said they are the cooks, waiters, kitchen and housekeeping staff, gardeners and groundsmen, electricians and plumbers, lifeguards, security personnel, etc working in the club and sought the protection of their source of livelihood as well as fundamental rights under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution. Seeking to quash the Centre’s May 22 notice, their plea said Delhi Gymkhana Club was not a place of leisure for them but their place of work.
“In view of the order passed by the coordinate bench , there is no requirement of passing of any further orders at this stage,” Justice Jain said and listed the lawsuits on November 19. They have filed the lawsuits against the Land and Development Office ‘s May 22 order terminating the colonial-era club’s perpetual lease deed and asking it to return its land by June 5 on grounds of “strengthening and securing defence infrastructure”. It has said that third parties cannot restrain the enforcement of rights arising from the now-determined lease deed between the authorities and the club for the land parcel. The application said the show-cause notice was “pre-mature” as it wrongly presumed that the Gymkhana Club’s perpetual lease was validly terminated.
