Newdelhi: The Delhi High Court has permitted the evicted management of the Central Secretariat Club to retrieve its belongings and other items from the club grounds located within the President's Estate area. Justice Amit Mahajan instructed central government officials to assist two designated office-bearers of the club in completing this retrieval process over a two-week period.
The judicial direction was issued in response to a petition brought forward by the club, previously known as Talkatora Club, challenging the revocation of its official recognition alongside a subsequent eviction directive that ordered an immediate vacation of the property. Authorities assumed control of the real estate while the legal proceedings remained ongoing.
Throughout the court session on October 7, legal representatives for the petitioner requested access to the grounds in order to recover specific possessions and paperwork. Granting this plea, the court mandated that respondents must allow two designated officers to visit the location and gather all necessary belongings, with a detailed inventory to be submitted after the visit is conducted.
The judiciary specified that subsequent to receiving the inventory, respondents are obligated to facilitate the safe collection of those items by the petitioner. Back on August 13, the high court previously requested the Central government's position regarding the club's petition while opting against issuing a status quo directive.
Within its legal filings, the club asserted that the Department of Personnel and Training acted arbitrarily, unlawfully, and unconstitutionally on July 14 by stripping away its recognition status. The organization argued that instead of addressing grievances concerning administrative irregularities during the tenure of a temporary ad-hoc committee, officials initially revoked recognition without providing a show-cause notice.
Following prior judicial intervention, a hearing was granted which ultimately led to the issuance of a revised derecognition notice on July 14. The petition characterized the contested derecognition decision alongside the subsequent eviction order as entirely arbitrary, malicious, unconstitutional, and reflective of a misuse of administrative authority.
The club argued that authorities attempted to exploit their own shortcomings and the actions of the temporary committee to forcibly dismantle a century-old institution, violating constitutional equality principles and natural justice. Furthermore, the petition contested that the eviction order unjustly categorized the 107-year-old establishment—which held permanent occupancy rights—as an unauthorized tenant strictly due to the disputed cancellation of its property allotment.