Trial court’s order stayed in Sujan Singh Park case

The Delhi High Court has stayed a trial court’s order that had upheld the government’s right to take back possession of the 7

The Delhi High Court has stayed a trial court’s order that had upheld the government’s right to take back possession of the 7.58-acre property at Sujan Singh Park in central Delhi, which includes the iconic Ambassador Hotel.

A bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna, on Monday, observed that Sir Sobha Singh & Sons, the owners of the property, had remained in long and continuous possession of the property, which had been in use since the 1960s. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna, on Monday, observed that Sir Sobha Singh & Sons, the owners of the property, had remained in long and continuous possession of the property, which had been in use since the 1960s.

“The impact of the impugned judgment would not only affect the rights of the appellant, but may also affect numerous persons residing in the flats constructed in the suit property. The balance of convenience, therefore, lies in maintaining the existing position till the regular second appeal is decided,” the court held.

Noting that the litigation has remained pending since 1960, “preservation of the existing position till the final adjudication of the disputes, would not cause any irreparable loss or injury to the Respondent, particularly when no immediate public interest requiring disturbance of possession has been pleaded,” the court noted, asking the central government and the owners of the property to maintain the status quo.

“Such legal questions require due consideration and till these questions are decided, it is imperative that the operation of the Judgment and Decree dated 09.06.2026 be stayed during the pendency of the Appeal,” the HC order further said.

The court passed the order in an appeal filed by Sir Sobha Singh & Sons against the trial court’s June 9 order, in a long pending dispute dating back to 1960.

The dispute stemmed, after the Centre issued a notice in February 1959, directing the company to remove any construction that stand as misuse of the building in two months and thereafter issued a letter dated August 5, 1960, claiming that it had re-entered the property with effect from July 29, 1960.

Following the letter, the company moved the court and in October 1960, the court restrained the government from enforcing the alleged re-entry through an interim injunction.

The suit was eventually decreed in the company’s favour on August 31, 2009, with the trial court declaring the government’s February 1959 notice “wrong and illegal”.

However, on June 9, the trial court set aside the decree, on Centre’s appeal.

In its appeal, Sir Sobha Singh & Sons said it had remained in continuous and uninterrupted possession of the property since 1943, with its possession protected since October 1960. It argued that the verdict disrupted the long-standing status quo and that dispossession during the appeal would cause irreparable harm, as the property houses several establishments, including the Ambassador Hotel. The company also flagged that the Estate Officer issued a show-cause notice on June 11, despite the reasoned judgment being uploaded only on June 12.

Centre’s lawyer Ashish Dixit submitted that the grant given to the company had been rightly cancelled and the proceedings under the Public Premises Act had been initiated for repossession of the property. He clarified that the SCN was not on the basis of the June 9 verdict, but had been issued on various other grounds.