The Delhi high court dismissed Indian Hotels Company Ltd’s (IHCL) plea challenging the move by the New Delhi Municipal Council, saying the firm has “no right” for renewal of the licence period.

A bench of justices Pradeep Nandrajog and Pratibha Rani observed that NDMC was “within its power” to secure maximum consideration for grant of licence for the property at the prime location of 1, Man Singh Road in Lutyen’s Delhi.

“To put it pithily, IHCL (which runs the hotel) has no right under the licence for a renewal thereof and therefore no further issue needs to be considered and decided,” the bench said while dismissing IHCL’s appeal in which it had challenged a single judge order dismissing their suit seeking to restrain NDMC from auctioning the property.

“It is the inherent right of every proprietor to secure maximum consideration for his property in all transactions, apart from transactions where the law limits consideration that can be charged by the proprietor, for any public purpose or in public interest,” the bench noted in its judgment.

“In the case of governmental bodies like the NDMC, the implicit right of a proprietor to maximise consideration for its property is also a duty since these bodies own and transact property in a fiduciary capacity for the general public,” the court said.

The property, owned by NDMC, was given to IHCL on a lease of 33 years.