The Delhi High Court on Wednesday said it will hear on January 28 an appeal of National Herald publisher Associated Journals Ltd (AJL), challenging a single judge order asking it to vacate its premises in New Delhi.
A Bnch headed by Chief Justice Rajendra Menon cited some health issues and asked whether the matter could be heard some other day. olicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, and senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for AJL, agreed.
The Chief Justice said he has to undergo some surgery and can take up the matter any day after January 24. The Bench, also comprising Justice V.K. Rao, listed the appeal for hearing on January 28.
A single judge had on December 21 last year dismissed AJL’s plea challenging the Centre’s order to vacate its premises and asked the publisher to vacate the ITO premises within two weeks after which eviction proceedings under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971, would be initiated. The AJL approached the high court seeking a stay on the single judge order.
The High Court had dismissed AJL’s plea challenging the Centre’s order by holding that the publisher has not provided any instance to support the serious allegations of mala fide levelled against the ruling dispensation.
The Centre had ended its 56-year-old lease and asked AJL to vacate the premises, saying no printing or publishing activity was going on.
In its plea, AJL has said the digital versions of English newspaper National Herald, Hindi’s Navjivan and Urdu’s Qaumi Awaz have commenced from 2016-17.
The weekly newspaper National Herald on Sunday resumed on September 24, 2017, and the place of publication was the ITO premises, AJL had said, adding that the Hindi weekly newspaper Sunday Navjivan was being published since October last year from the same premises.