Court defers attachment of Delhi’s iconic Bikaner House
The case arose after the corporation failed to pay Enviro Infra Engineers Pvt Ltd for constructing a sewage treatment plant in Nokha, Rajasthan
A Delhi commercial court on Friday deferred the attachment order of the historic Bikaner House, granting the Rajasthan Municipal Corporation of Nokha a week to deposit ₹50.31 lakh, the amount mandated by a 2020 arbitral award in favour of a private company.
The case arose after the corporation failed to pay Enviro Infra Engineers Pvt Ltd for constructing a sewage treatment plant in Nokha, a municipality in Bikaner district of Rajasthan. The heritage building was enlisted as one of the assets owned by the municipal body.
The order followed intense exchanges in the courtroom, with the Rajasthan government contesting the attachment by asserting that Bikaner House is state-owned and not under the municipal body’s jurisdiction.
The court, however, expressed displeasure over the state government’s delayed response.
“Now you have woken up from your slumber? How do you justify the lack of response? Despite repeated opportunities, you failed to file the assets,” district judge (commercial court) Vidya Prakash remarked during the hearing at Patiala House Courts.
The court ruled that the attachment of Bikaner House, located near India Gate in New Delhi, would be deferred only if the municipal authority deposits the award amount in the form of a fixed deposit receipt by the deadline. It also fixed January 7 as the next date of hearing to monitor compliance.
Bikaner House, situated near India Gate in the national capital, is a historic property built during the rule of Maharaja Ganga Singh of Bikaner. Once the princely state’s headquarters in Delhi, it represents Rajasthan’s architectural and cultural heritage.
The case dates back to 2011 when Nokha Municipal Corporation awarded a contract to Enviro Infra Engineers for constructing a sewage treatment plant. Although the project was completed in 2016, the final payment was withheld, prompting the company to seek arbitration.
In 2020, the arbitral tribunal directed the municipal body to pay ₹50.31 lakh, but persistent delays in compliance led the company to seek court intervention.
In September 2024, the court ordered the attachment of Bikaner House after repeated non-compliance by the municipal body. “The judgement debtor (Municipal Corporation of Nokha) had failed to comply with the direction for furnishing an affidavit of their assets despite repeated opportunities… it is a fit case for issuance of warrants of attachment against immovable property,” it had ruled.
With no responses from the state government, a prohibitory order was subsequently issued on November 7, restraining the civic body and the Rajasthan government from transferring or selling the property.
The Rajasthan government, represented by additional advocate general Shiv Mangal Sharma, argued on Friday that the municipal authority does not own Bikaner House. “The property belongs to the state government, and the attachment order cannot stand,” Sharma contended.
The written statement on behalf of the state added: “Government of Rajasthan owns the property in question… and have neither in any way connected or belong to the judgement debtor (Municipal Corporation of Nokha) in any manner and hence the most urgent indulgence is sought from this hon’ble court to recall the order … and to release the property in question”.
The government contended that Nokha municipal officials failed to represent themselves diligently, resulting in incorrect facts being presented to the court.
The municipal body, on its part, filed an affidavit detailing the assets owned by it. The affidavit further blamed it on an “internal lack of communication” because of which the civic body remained unaware that the case was not being pursued properly.
The court, however, criticised the municipal authority for its negligence and repeated failures to comply with directives.
Warning that failure to comply could revive the attachment order, judge Vidya Prakash emphasised that the deposit of the awarded amount must be completed within the stipulated time.
Advocates Sahil Garg and Abhinav Jain, representing the private enterprise, informed the court that the amount due, with accrued interest, now stands at approximately ₹97 lakh. They argued that Nokha Municipal Corporation is an extension of the Rajasthan government (which owns Bikaner House), making the state accountable for the payment.