Taking note of Supreme Infrastructure India (petitioner’s) undertaking to renew and keep the bank guarantees alive and subsisting during the pendency of the petition, the Delhi High Court found it appropriate to grant conditional interim protection to it. The Court clarified that the protection against precipitative steps by Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) was made expressly contingent upon the petitioner fulfilling its obligation to renew the bank guarantees, so as to balance equities between the parties at the interim stage, without prejudging the merits of the dispute.
A Single Judge Bench of Justice Sachin Datta noted the petitioner’s candid admission that the termination notice relief was no longer live. On the question of bank guarantees, the Bench took cognisance of the petitioner’s submission that: (i) the expired bank guarantees would be renewed and kept alive during the pendency of the petition; and (ii) no cause whatsoever existed for DUSIB to invoke the said guarantees, particularly given that they had already lapsed.
The Court therefore issued notice to DUSIB, to file its reply within two weeks from the date of the order, and permitted the petitioner to file a rejoinder, if any, before the next date of hearing. The petitioner was also directed to renew the bank guarantees and keep them alive and subsisting during the pendency of the petition. Further, subject to such renewal, DUSIB was restrained from taking any precipitative steps in relation to the said bank guarantees. The matter has been listed for the next hearing on Sep 03, 2026.
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Briefly, Supreme Infrastructure India Ltd. filed petition seeking two reliefs: (i) a restraint on the termination notice dated April 22, 2026 issued by the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), and (ii) a restraint on the invocation of bank guarantees furnished by the petitioner in favour of DUSIB in connection with the “Construction of 7400 (G+4) five storeyed EWS houses under JNNURM for Slum Dwellers at Pocket – II Bhalaswa, Jahangirpuri” project.
At the hearing, Senior Counsel for the petitioner, Shashank Garg, candidly conceded that the relief concerning the termination notice had become infructuous, as the contract stood already terminated by the time the matter came up for hearing. It was further brought on record that the bank guarantees in question had also expired by the date of hearing.
