HC junks ACI plea against eviction from Safadarjung Airport

The Delhi High Court today dismissed a plea of the Aero Club of India (ACI) challenging its eviction from land belonging to the Safdarjung Airport here, saying it had already "overstayed" for four years.
Justice Vibhu Bakhru denied any relief to ACI, the apex body of all Flying Clubs/Institutions engaged in Flying Training and Aero-Sports in the country, after the Airports Authority of India (AAI) submitted that it needed the land for its own use.
"Your (ACI) license expired in 2013. You have overstayed for four years. They are right to ask you for eviction. What is your legal right to occupy the land," the court asked.

The ACI had claimed that AAI had acted in an arbitrary manner in cancelling the lease.
Advocate Digvijay Rai, appearing for AAI, opposed the petition, saying that the licence for the 17,400 square feet land opposite Jor Bagh colony in South Delhi, located opposite the airport, was given to the ACI in 1983 for 30 years and it had expired in 2013.
As the ACI did not agree to pay the revised fee for the license, the lease was cancelled, he said.
The ACI had moved the high court against the eviction order passed by Eviction Officer on June 16 asking it to vacate the premises within 15 days.

Its petition claimed that the eviction order was arbitrary, discriminatory, unconstitutional and erroneous in law as well as on facts.