“Delhi Gymkhana Club row explained: Inside the eviction battle over one of India’s most elite clubs”的完整文字稿。点击时间戳即可从该位置打开视频。想要其他视频的字幕？试试 YouTube 字幕提取工具。
0:00 For more than a century, Delhi Gymkhana Club has been one of the most powerful addresses in India, a place where bureaucrats, diplomats, military officers, politicians and business elites gathered behind colonial-era walls. But now, this iconic club is staring at eviction. The centre has ordered the Delhi Gymkhana Club to vacate its massive 27.3-acre property in Lattins, Delhi by 5 June. So what is the entire row about? The story goes back to 1911 when King George V shifted India's imperial capital from Calcutta to Delhi. A new city had to be built and with it, its social infrastructure. By 1930, the Imperial Delhi Gymkhana Club had taken shape, conceived for the military garrison of the new capital. Seven Maharajas, including those of Kualir, Jaipur,
0:49 Jodhpur, Kashmir and Udaipur, were made life members for their role in founding it. In its colonial heyday, The club was as much about power as it was about sport. Early Indian civil servants had to master the foxtrot and adopt British dining customs just to be taken seriously inside these walls. Some accounts also suggest that during partition, officers from regiments that would soon belong to two separate nations hosted emotional farewell gatherings at the club. After independence, the word imperial was dropped, but the exclusivity stayed. Its members include senior IAS, IPS and IFS officers, military officials, judges, diplomats, politicians and corporate leaders. Today, the club has around 14,000 members, 500 to 600 employees and
1:35 a waiting list that can stretch up to 10 years. On 22 May, the Land and Development Office, LNDO, under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, issued a notice directing the club to vacate. The government says the land is now needed for quote-unquote strengthening and securing defence infrastructure and other quote-unquote vital public security purposes, given its proximity to the Prime Minister's residence. The order also specified that upon re-entry, the entire 27.3 acres, along with every building, structure, lawn and fitting would vest absolutely in the president of India. But security is not the only issue here. There's a money angle too. Reports suggest that the LNDO sent three formal notices to the club regarding unpaid ground rent dues, first in
2:26 September 2025, demanding Rs 32.88 crore in revised ground rent plus interest. In March, documents were sought for subletting charges linked to the Punjab National Bank, which occupies space on the premises. Then in May, a final notice, consolidating the total dues at Rs 47.58 crore and a seven-day ultimatum. The club did not pay and the eviction order followed. Now, some members of the last elected committee say they were never told about any of these notices. Now, who is running the club now? its elected management is not currently running the club. Back in 2022, the National Company Law Tribunal, or the NCLT, allowed the centre to take over the club's administration after allegations of
3:13 financial irregularities and governance failures surfaced. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs argued that the club's operations were against the public interest. After that, a government-appointed committee took charge of operations. This committee claims it reversed the club's fortunes from a loss of 12.39 crore in 2021-2022 to a projected profit of 9.25 crore in 2023-2024. But former elected members disagree. They allege the appointed body mishandled the situation and allowed the crisis to escalate. The matter is now before the Delhi High Court. The club has called the order arbitrary and a violation of due process. Meanwhile, its governing committee is asking the government for clarity on
3:59 the future of over 600 employees. It wants to know if the club's upcoming events will be protected. And critically, it is seeking an alternative plot of land in case the takeover proceeds. This club outlasted the British Raj, survived partition and endured decades of politics. Whether it survives this is now for the courts to decide. Follow Business Standard for more stories.
