Delhi HC agrees to examine Sir Sobha Singh & Sons' appeal in ambassador hotel matter; records centre's assurance on eviction proceedings

The Delhi High Court has agreed to examine an appeal filed by Sir Sobha Singh & Sons Private Limited against a recent appellate court order that went against the company in a long-running property dispute with the Union of India over the Ambassador Hotel block at Sujan Singh Park in central Delhi.

The Delhi High Court has agreed to examine an appeal filed by Sir Sobha Singh & Sons Private Limited against a recent appellate court order that went against the company in a long-running property dispute with the Union of India over the Ambassador Hotel block at Sujan Singh Park in central Delhi. Justice Tejas Karia, hearing the matter as a Vacation Judge, directed that the records of the trial court and the district court be called for and placed before the Court. The matter has now been listed before the roster bench on July 23, 2026.

Senior Advocates Sandeep Sethi and Sudhir Nandrajog appeared for the company. However, the Union of India was represented by Central Government Standing Counsel Ashish K Dixit, along with Government Pleader Adhiraj Singh, Deputy L&DO Kunal Bhaskar and advocates Aakash Tyagi and Nishant Bahuguna. The company also sought interim protection, saying it was facing a possible eviction after the Union Government issued a notice on June 11, 2026, under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971.

The company's counsel urged the Court to grant urgent relief while the stay application remained pending. On behalf of the Centre, CGSC Ashish K Dixit submitted that the proceedings initiated under the Public Premises Act were separate and independent from the appellate court judgment.

However, the company pointed out that the eviction notice itself referred to the June 9, 2026 judgment and stated that the proceedings had been initiated in compliance with that order. The Court then recorded the Centre's statement that the proceedings under the Public Premises Act would be conducted independently and would not be influenced by the appellate court judgment.

The Court directed that the Union of India would remain bound by this statement. In view of the assurance, the Court did not pass any interim order staying the appellate court judgment at this stage. According to the appeal, the dispute relates to the northern block of Sujan Singh Park, where the iconic Ambassador Hotel was built under a Government Grant and Agreement to Lease executed in 1945.

The company has claimed that the Government was fully aware of the construction of the hotel and actively supported the project by approving building plans, supervising construction work, supplying scarce wartime construction materials and later granting formal approval in 1951. Sir Sobha Singh & Sons has argued that despite supporting and benefiting from the Ambassador Hotel project, the Government later claimed that the hotel building violated the terms of the grant and sought to justify a re-entry into the property in 1960.

The company has said that the Government occupied flats in the complex, assured the hotel operator that it would not interfere with hotel operations and continued to benefit from the project for several decades before alleging misuse. The appeal states that after nearly 50 years of litigation, the trial court ruled in favour of the company in 2009 on all 16 issues involved in the suit. The trial court held that no misuse of the Ambassador Hotel property had been proved, that the Government could not claim breach after approving the construction, and that the re-entry action was not in accordance with the agreement between the parties. The court also directed the Government to execute the perpetual lease contemplated under the original grant.

Challenging the appellate court's decision, the company has argued that the court wrongly held that the civil court had no jurisdiction while at the same time examining the merits of the dispute and overturning the trial court decree. The company has further argued that the Government Grants Act does not bar civil suits and that the appellate court ignored important evidence and wrongly interpreted Supreme Court judgments.

It has also relied on the principles of estoppel and unjust enrichment, saying the Government cannot seek forfeiture under the grant while ignoring its own obligations under the same arrangement. Seeking restoration of the 2009 decree, Sir Sobha Singh & Sons has urged the High Court to set aside the appellate court judgment, arguing that it overlooks decades of Government approval and acceptance of the Ambassador Hotel project and wrongly upholds an extra-judicial re-entry into the property. (ANI)