Amid the Rs 50 crore corruption charges and a slew of other resurfaced allegations against the Delhi Gymkhana Club (DGC), a former board member has alleged that she faced suspension and loss of membership after she exposed major issues with the club.
The whistleblower, identified as Niji Sapra, has now alleged that after exposing serious violations of Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) guidelines by its previous board, she was suspended for a year and later lost her membership, despite being a lawfully elected board member.
She alleged that there was an "elite mafia ecosystem" operating behind the scenes, who were very influential, and had “systematically committed financial frauds", as per a News18 report.
In that regard, the MCA had alleged in 2022 that the club had committed financial fraud in the collection of public deposits to the tune of Rs 50 crore, amid other violations of laws such as the Companies Act, 1956, and the Companies Act, 2013.
Apart from allegations of fraudulently spending Rs 4 crore of public funds, the DGC has also sparked backlash for an alleged national security breach when a drone from the club was flown in close proximity to PM Modi's house.
Sapra has also claimed that certain connected individuals had easily secured memberships for their next of kin, stepping over ordinary applicants who waited decades for the same opportunity.
The case so far
This comes amid a May 22 order from the Land and Development Office (L&DO) against the club, ordering it to vacate and hand over its 27.3-acre premises at 2, Safdarjung Road in Lutyens' Delhi by June 5.
The Centre's order invoked Clause 4 of the original lease deed, which allows it to resume possession if the land is required for “public purpose".
This "public purpose" is now being cited as the “strengthening and securing of defence infrastructure”, governance facilities, and other “vital public security purposes", as per a Bar and Bench report.
The report added that Vijay Khurana, a longstanding member of the club, has filed a suit challenging the Centre's orders, which will likely be taken up on May 26.
Calling the eviction order a “malicious and colourable exercise", Khurana slammed the Centre for what he called vague and generalised reasons for the eviction.
He also argued that it was not providing any compensation for the property and associated costs, which—apart from other claims—which he termed a “flagrant violation” of Article 300A of the Constitution.