The Managing Committee of the prestigious Amar Singh Club in Srinagar has issued a formal eviction notice to the 79th Battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), accusing it of unauthorisedly occupying the Club’s Guest House and a significant portion of its land measuring over 108,000 square feet since 2018.
In a letter dated April 11, 2025, the Club’s Honorary Secretary Nasir Hamid Khan informed the Commanding Officer of the battalion that legal proceedings are being initiated to recover possession of the Club property, along with a compensation claim amounting to Rs 10 crores.
The Club alleges that the CRPF not only continues to occupy the Guest House and surrounding land without any official sanction but has also begun charging room rent from guests—a move the Club says violates several legal norms.
According to the Club’s communication, the 79th Battalion had vacated the premises in 2015 following repeated requests by the Club and the government’s provision of alternate accommodation at the Royal Apartments in Rajbagh and the Cricket Stadium at Sonwar.
The Guest House was subsequently renovated by the Club in collaboration with the R&B Department, and between 2016 and 2019, it hosted visiting members from affiliated Clubs nationwide.
The dispute reportedly began in 2018, when the 13th Battalion of CRPF was temporarily housed on Club land for the Amarnath Yatra.
However, after their departure, the 79th Battalion re-occupied the land and, in August 2019, took over the Guest House premises—including the dining hall and kitchen—allegedly without any formal approval.
The Club claims this was done despite only verbal instructions from the then Divisional Commissioner, which, according to Club rules, hold no legal authority.
Supporting their case, the Club cited a police report from November 2020 acknowledging the CRPF’s occupation of 13 rooms and the Guest House facilities. Another certificate issued in March 2022 confirmed the occupation of the entire 108,000 sqft land.
The Club argues that this sequence of events reveals an attempt to retroactively legitimise what they describe as land-grabbing.
