NDMC seals hotel The Connaught following Delhi High Court order

NEW DELHI: On the orders of the Delhi High Court, the New Delhi Municipal Council ( NDMC) has sealed hotel The Connaught in Central Delhi, whose owner is embroiled in a controversy over murder of an estate officer who was handling the issue of its lease terms.

The owner of the hotel, Ramesh Kakkar, was arrested earlier this week along with six others in connection with the murder of NDMC official MM Khan, who was about to pass an order on the terms of the property's lease.

The hotel owes the civic body Rs 140 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 after the High Court cleared the decks for eviction and recovery proceedings.

As per an order of the High Court in February, the hotel was de-sealed and Khan was made the Estate Officer. He was to pass final order in the lease matter, which is a quasi-judicial action, on May 17, a day before he was shot dead.

However, the High Court yesterday 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 last evening," an NDMC official said.

Police officials ensured that the law and order situation did not get disrupted during the sealing, a senior police official said.

Khan's family has claimed that there was tremendous pressure on him from his seniors to waive penalty of around Rs 140 crore imposed on the hotel for violation of licence term, a matter which is still being probed by the police.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and Union Home minister Rajnath Singh had yesterday announced compensation of Rs one crore and Rs 25 lakh respectively to Khan's family.

NDMC has also offered a job to one of the family members of Khan and allotted a three-tier house to them.