New Delhi, Jan 7 (UNI) Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Wednesday issued an official statement saying it carried out an encroachment removal drive at Ramleela Ground in compliance with directions of the Delhi High Court.
The MCD said it is a licensee of Ramleela Ground under the Land & Development Office (L&DO), Government of India. Acting on a complaint, the civic body conducted a joint survey with officials of the L&DO and the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), which found encroachment over around 36,428 square feet of the ground.
According to the MCD, the survey revealed that the encroached area was being used for a banquet hall and other commercial activities, including a private diagnostic centre. The encroachment also extended to parts of the road and footpath.
The civic body said a writ petition was later filed in the Delhi High Court seeking removal of encroachment from Ramleela Ground. On November 12, 2025, the High Court directed the MCD to take appropriate action to remove the encroachments and illegal commercial activities mentioned in the joint survey report within three months, after giving the affected parties an opportunity to be heard.
In compliance with the court’s directions, the MCD said it granted personal hearings to the affected parties on November 24 and December 16, 2025. The hearings were attended by representatives of the Managing Committee Masjid Syed Faiz Illahi, the Delhi Waqf Board, the DDA, the L&DO, and officials from the Revenue Department of the Delhi government.
After considering the documents and submissions made during the hearings, the MCD passed an order on December 22, 2025. The civic body concluded that the L&DO had executed a lease deed in 1940 for an area of only 0.195 acre, where a tin shed with a platform, a hujra and a graveyard existed.
It added that neither the Delhi Waqf Board nor the managing committee could establish ownership or rights beyond the land covered under the lease deed.
The MCD said that in follow-up to its order and in compliance with the High Court’s directions, an encroachment removal exercise was carried out on January 7. The drive excluded the leased land area of 0.195 acre, it added.
