The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) sealed The Connaught hotel in Central Delhi late Friday evening following the orders of the Delhi high court.
The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) sealed The Connaught hotel in Central Delhi late Friday evening following the orders of the Delhi high court.
The owner of The Connaught, Ramesh Kakkar, was embroiled in a controversy over the murder of an estate officer handling the issue of the hotel’s lease terms. He was arrested earlier this week along with six others in connection with the murder of NDMC official M.M. Khan, who was about to pass an order on the terms of the property’s lease.
The hotel owes the civic body Rs140 crore as licence fee. The hotel’s lease had been terminated in 1995 and, after a lengthy court battle, it was sealed in February last year when the high court cleared the decks for eviction and recovery proceedings.
As per a February high court order, the hotel was de-sealed and Khan was made the estate officer. He was to pass the final order in the lease matter, a quasi-judicial action, on May 17, a day before he was shot dead.
However, the HC on Friday declined to extend the earlier permission given to de-seal the hotel premises and made it clear that the relief was only meant to be temporary in nature.
The court also told NDMC it wouldn’t stand in the way of its sealing and recovery proceedings and that the civic agency doesn’t need permission for re-sealing. “Following orders from the court, the premises of the hotel were sealed late Friday evening,” an NDMC official said.
Police officials ensured law and order was maintained during the sealing, a senior police official said. Khan’s family has claimed there was tremendous pressure on him from his seniors to waive the penalty of around Rs 140 crore imposed on the hotel for violation of licence terms, a matter still being probed by the police.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and Union home minister Rajnath Singh had on Friday announced compensation of Rs 1 crore and Rs 25 lakh, respectively, for Khan’s family. NDMC has offered a job to one member of Khan’s family and allotted them a three-tier house.
Meanwhile, Iqra Khan, the eldest daughter of the officer, on Saturday met Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and demanded security for her family and “fair” probe in her father’s murder case.
Iqra (24), who is pursuing MBBS, met Mr Kejriwal at his house and was accompanied by AAP MLA from Okhla Amanatullah Khan.
“During the meeting, Khan’s daughter demanded a proper investigation in her father’s murder case. She also demanded that security be provided to her family which is feeling unsafe these days,” a senior government official said.
Aam Aadmi Party has alleged that NDMC vice-chairman Karan Singh Tanwar had threatened the 57-year-old estate officer with dire consequences a few days before his murder.
The party demanded his arrest and a probe by Delhi police into his alleged “complicity” with the murderers.
