Delhi HC revives ₹1,063 crore dues, upholds termination of The LaLit licence in NDMC case
New Delhi: In a setback to Bharat Hotels, which owns The LaLit Suri Hospitality Group, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday revived the New Delhi Municipal Council's ₹1,063.74 crore licence fee demand and also the termination of licence for The LaLit, a five-star hotel in the Capital, for breach of 1982 licence deed.
Upholding the civic body's communication to terminate the licence deed with Bharat Hotels and handover the peaceful possession of The LaLit premises in New Delhi to the NDMC within 90 days, a division bench (DB) comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela said that Bharat Hotels had rightly been found to be in fundamental breach of the clauses of the licence deed signed with the municipal body in 1982 and therefore, the licence of the hotel had been rightly terminated by the civic body.
"There cannot be any doubt that land in New Delhi is one of the scarcest resource. Any transaction resulting in such a huge loss to NDMC ultimately burdens taxpayers. Such a transaction, in our opinion, cannot be approved of, else it would violate Article 14 of the Constitution of India," the DB said, setting aside the single judge's order that had quashed both the demand notice and the February 13, 2020 communication terminating the licence deed.
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