HC to Centre: Delhi May 'Suffocate' Over Club Takeover

The Delhi High Court on Monday criticised the Centre’s decision to take over nearly 200-year-old properties across the Capital, including the Delhi Gymkhana Club, Delhi Race Club and the Jaipur Polo Grounds, saying converting these heritage and open spaces into high-rise developments would choke the city.

A vacation bench led by Justice Neena Bansal Krishna questioned the government’s reliance on “public purpose” to acquire the sprawling tracts, describing them as vital “breathers” for residents in a city already battling severe pollution. “What are you going to do with all these heritage structures? Even Gymkhana is a heritage structure. What are you going to do? Make 20‑storey buildings? Delhi will suffocate,” the court told the Centre’s standing counsel Ashish Dixit. “All of us will suffocate and die.”

The bench, hearing a petition by the Indian Polo Association (IPA) challenging an eviction order, warned that replacing low-rise heritage neighbourhoods and open grounds with high-rises could render the Capital “not fit for anyone.” “Delhi people, please go to some small mountain and stay there,” the court added, urging the protection of what it called the city’s “small lung.”

The IPA had challenged an eviction notice issued on May 20 under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, which directed vacation of the 15.20-acre Jaipur Polo Grounds by June 4. The association told the court that it had informed the trial court of the likelihood of coercive action after the deadline and that its appeal and request for interim protection were not adequately considered.

Defending the move, Dixit said the acquisition of nearly 200 acres aimed at redevelopment and to meet certain defence-related requirements. He also told the court that no execution proceedings had been initiated against the IPA and that coercive action was not being contemplated until Friday.

The bench questioned why the government had acted now on lands that have existed for centuries without intervention. “They have existed for more than 200 years. Government never felt the need of the land… Defence requirement for what? This has been going on for years,” the court observed.

The High Court disposed of the petition and directed the Patiala House courts to decide the IPA’s application for a stay on the eviction notice by June 10.