Delhi High Court Upholds Termination of Bharat Hotels' Licence for The Lalit

The Delhi High Court has upheld the decision by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) to terminate its licence agreement with Bharat Hotels Ltd, which involves the land housing the 5-star hotel, The Lalit. The court ruled in favor of NDMC's appeal, overturning a past decision that had quashed the termination.

The bench, comprising Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, set aside the December 2023 order by a single judge. According to the bench, Bharat Hotels was in fundamental breach of the licence deed, which justified the termination. NDMC's demand for over Rs 1,063 crore in arrears remains valid.

The court emphasized that clauses in the original licence agreement were inconsistent with current law and potentially harmful to the public. Thus, the burden of lost revenue would unfairly fall upon taxpayers. Senior advocate Malvika Trivedi and standing counsel Sriharsha Peechara represented NDMC in this matter.