New Delhi: The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) on Thursday decided to auction two five-star hotels, Taj Mansingh and the Le-Meridian. The council meeting which was headed by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal passed the resolution to go ahead.
The NDMC has decided to e-auction all the properties that they are planning to auction, which gives a chance to the existing leaseholders of the properties to apply for the properties again. Supreme Court in January this year asked NDMC to reconsider the decision to auction the property.
The two decisions were pending, as the NDMC was entangled in legal battles with the two hotel owners, with matter going up to the Supreme Court which asked the civic body to take a relook at the matter.
“The right of first refusal to the Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL)- Tata's has been denied as it would not be in public interest. The Supreme Court will be apprised of the decision accordingly” said the minutes of the meeting further.
Mansingh, owned by NDMC, was given to Tata's IHCL on lease for 33 years. The lease expired in 2011 and the company was given nine temporary extensions since then on various grounds. Similarly the Le-Meridian which is spread over 4.5 acres of land will also be put for auctioning as it did not clear arrears amounting to Rs 518 crore at the time the show cause notice was issued in November 2016, informed an NDMC official.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, a member of NDMC Council, made the announcement following a special meeting of its top decision-making body.
"Important decisions today's NDMC meeting- open auction of Taj Mansingh, cancel Le Meridian Hotel license" Kejriwal tweeted.
The civic body had also selected SBI Cap, which was the Centre's advisor for coal blocks auctions, to be its transaction advisor for the auction. However, the process got delayed with the Tata's moving court.
The civic body also decided to cancel the license of Le Meridien, another posh hotel in the Lutyens' Delhi.
"The council decided that the license of the hotel be terminated due to non-payment of license fee worth Rs 523 crore and the Delhi High Court will be apprised accordingly, keeping in view the gross abuse of the process of law by the hotel," the NDMC official said.