Don’t take precipitative action against Taj Mansingh: HC

New Delhi, Sep 6 (PTI) Delhi High Court today directedNew Delhi Municipal Council not to any take "precipitativeaction" against the iconic Taj Mansingh Hotel while allowingIndian Hotels Company Ltd (IHCL), which runs the luxuryproperty, to "strengthen" its appeal against a single judgeorder. The High Court also chided IHCL for their "urgency" inappealing against the single judge order, saying India was"not a banana republic" and the NDMC would not have seized afunctioning hotel. Yesterday, the single judge had dismissed the suit by thecurrent operator, Tata group’s IHCL, to renew its licence andupheld NDMC’s decision to go for auction. Subsequently, IHCL filed an appeal before the divisionbench against the order of the single judge. During a brief hearing on the appeal, a bench of justicesPradeep Nandrajog and Pratibha Rani observed "what was thegreat urgency" to file an appeal having "half baked grounds." "Don’t show anxiety. They (authorities concerned) are notgoing to come as of now. Heavens are not going to fall if youwould have waited for some more time. "Take your time and first try to digest the judgement ofthe single judge. It is a running hotel. Can they (NDMC) comeand seize it? Has the country become a banana republic," thebench observed orally. "We expect your (IHCL) people to strengthen it. By Fridayyou give your crystallised grounds. They will have to go toyou and give you notice before any action is taken. They arenot going to do it overnight. The estate officer and the NDMCpeople are here, nothing will happen. They are reasonablepeople," the court said. "You (NDMC) are not going to take any precipitativeaction," the bench told the counsel for NDMC, to which theyagreed. The court fixed the matter for further hearing onSeptember 15. The property, owned by NDMC, was given to IHCL on a leasefor 33 years, which had ended in 2011. The company was givennine temporary extensions since then on various grounds withthree of them being in the last year itself. NDMC had in January this year said it was in the processof assessing the assets of the hotel in preparation for itsmuch-delayed auction. IHCL had approached the high court seeking a decree ofpermanent injunction restraining the NDMC from interfering inany manner with the possession, right to operate, run andmaintain the hotel at the prime location in Lutyen’s Delhi. IHCL had sought a direction restraining the NDMC fromconducting an auction to running the hotel. PTI PPS ABAARC