The Delhi High Court on Tuesday cleared the way for eviction proceedings against the Delhi Race Club by setting aside an earlier order that had paused action over its 84-acre premises in Lutyens’ Delhi.

A Bench of Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia allowed the Centre’s appeal against an April 24 order passed by a single-judge Bench.

The dispute concerns the club’s occupation of an 84-acre plot on Lok Kalyan Marg. The Centre had argued that the lease granted to the club in 1926 expired on December 31, 1994, and had not been renewed.

According to the Centre, the club has continued to occupy the premises without authorisation since the expiry of the lease. In March, the Centre issued a notice seeking peaceful possession of the land, stating that it was required for a “public purpose”.

Subsequently, on April 17, proceedings were initiated under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, and a show-cause notice was issued asking the club to explain why eviction orders and recovery for unauthorised occupation should not be passed against it.

The club challenged the notice before a single-judge Bench, which directed the authorities not to proceed further with the matter until July 30.

Appearing for the Centre, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma argued that the lease had admittedly expired in 1994 and that, in the absence of any renewal or fresh lease, the club was an “unauthorised occupant” under Section 2(g) of the Public Premises Act.

The Bench held that the single judge could not have restrained the authorities from proceeding without recording findings on the principles governing interim relief.

“Nothing has been considered by the learned Single Judge in respect of a prima facie case, irreparable loss and balance of convenience while passing the impugned order,” the Bench observed.