3 min readNew DelhiJul 1, 2026 03:30 PM IST
The Delhi High Court Wednesday refrained from passing immediate orders to protect the Jaipur Polo Ground, now in government possession, from irreversible alteration, but orally remarked to government counsel: “You’re anyway in possession, there is no hurry to tear it up.”
The Indian Polo Association (IPA), which managed the ground, in its petition sought that the government be restrained from “demolition, uprooting, digging, disturbing or altering the Jaipur Polo Ground”, or any other physical alteration of the land and turf at the specialised sporting facility.
Eviction and takeover
On June 13, the government began the process of taking physical possession of the Jaipur Polo Ground, one of the Capital’s most prominent sporting venues, spread across 15.20 acres in the heart of Lutyens’ Delhi.
The move was initiated following an eviction order issued on May 20 directing the IPA to vacate the property under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act. The order stated that the land was required “for a larger public purpose and benefit”.
While the IPA had challenged the eviction order, the sessions court on June 12 refused to grant a stay.
A trial court on June 18 also dismissed an application by the association seeking restoration of possession. After the government took physical possession of the land, the IPA moved a petition before the Delhi HC on June 20.
What happened in court
On Wednesday, even as IPA’s counsel pressed for interim relief, Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar orally observed that the earlier coordinate benches of the High Court dealing with the case had declined to give relief to the association in any manner. The court posted the matter for hearing on July 9.
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However, addressing government’s standing counsel Ashish Dixit, the court orally remarked, “You’re anyway in possession, there is no hurry to tear it (the ground) up… I’m not passing any order (today).”
On June 29, Dixit had told the court that the Jaipur Polo Ground is only being demarcated for raising a boundary and nothing was being done to the playing area turf.
He reiterated the position orally before the court on Wednesday, after the association’s counsel flagged their concerns over digging up of the polo turf. The IPA added that there are events slated later this month.
Brief history
The land parcel where the ground is situated was gifted by the erstwhile Maharaja of Jaipur to the Delhi Polo Club around 1930, and was formally leased on February 24, 1951, to the Club by the Central Public Works Department for a period of 20 years.
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According to IPA, the lease was extended in 1971 till 1982, with further extensions continuing thereafter. In 1983, the lease was extended until March 1993.
Following the dissolution of the Delhi Polo Club in 1983, the premises were transferred and allotted in favour of IPA.
Over the decades, the Jaipur Polo Ground has been a centre of national and international polo events and tournaments such as the Asian Games equestrian events, IPA National Polo Championship, Indian Masters Trophy, among others.
In February 1922, the Jaipur Polo Ground hosted a polo match between Jodhpur and Patiala, which according to IPA, was witnessed by 1,50,000 people at the time.
