HC allows NHAI to take possession of kiosks on NH-2 from Image

New Delhi, June 20 (UNI) The Delhi High court today allowed National Highway Authority of India(NHAI) to take back possession of bus shelters, kiosks, coffee homes and tree gaurds situated on NH-2 from Image Advertising as the five-year lease contract between them had lapsed.

Vacation judge Pradeep Nandrajog today vacated the injunction orders imposed by senior civil judge(Delhi) Sanatan Prasad, restraining NHAI to take possession of the bus shelters, kiosks and toilet blocks as the advertising agency had yet to realise the money spent on building these facilities by way of booking display advertisements on them.

The Counsel for Image Advertising pleaded before court that they entered into a contract with NHAI to build kiosks, bus shelters, telephone booths and toilets by investing crores of rupees.

He said due to confusion over sites for these facilities between the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and Delhi Transport Corporation, construction work got delayed due to which the agency did not get enough time to realise the invested money.

Sudhir Haryal, owner of Image Advertising, submitted before the court that his agency had entered into a contract with NHAI to build twenty bus shelters (ten on each side of the road), toilet blocks, including STD booths, coffee kiosks and signages between milestone 9 and 36 on NH-2 in Haryana.

He said the agency spent Rs 2.5 crore on construction of these facilities but due to delay in identification of sites for them they failed to realise their investment. He pointed out that the contract had a renewal clause too.

The Counsel for NHAI argued that as the term of contract has ended, not handing over the structures to the authority amounts to a breach of contract.

UNI