Will Mahalaxmi racecourse's oldest restaurant get up and run again?

Gallops restaurant at Mahalaxmi racecourse

Representatives of the Royal Western India Turf Club Committee (RWITC) and Gallops restaurant, Mahalaxmi racecourse's oldest restaurant on the turf, are set to meet at the racecourse today, to negotiate the terms and timeframe of recovering Rs 18 crore from the restaurant.

Gallops was sealed after a High Court order on April 5 stated that BJR's (it stands for promoters Bobby Singh, Jasmin Singh and Rahul Malik), the firm that ran the restaurant, had "flouted Supreme Court orders asking it to pay R18 crore to RWITC."

Gallops restaurant at Mahalaxmi racecourse

The meeting between RWITC and Gallop members comes after the April 10 court order where Justice G Patel put the April 5 HC order in context saying, "BJR's, which runs Gallops, was effectively running an enterprise for profit on someone else's property without paying a single paisa for it. That situation is inconceivable."

The judgment said that overall the BJR's has to pay the club Rs 52 crore, yet the Supreme Court had 'directed' it to pay Rs 18 crore. "There is no question of negotiating a figure ordered by the Supreme Court. It is not open to discussion or negotiation. It has to be paid and that is all there is to it," the order stated, adding, "Parties may agree on a schedule for payment of Rs 18 crore, but that is all that they can negotiate."

Khushroo Dhunjibhoy, chairman, RWITC, said, "Today the committee will meet with Gallops (BJR's) representatives to set a timeframe on which they have to pay Rs 18 crore. There is no question about negotiating this amount, the court has directed them to pay R18 crore and that is what they will have to pay." About time frame, he said, "They will have to decide some reasonable time frame and we will discuss it with them."

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Jasmin Singh of BJR's refused to comment saying none of the promoters or her lawyers are willing to speak. "I will not tell you whether we will be at the meeting today, no comments," she said. The matter will come up again in the High Court on April 16, at 3 pm.

Insiders claimed that before the April 10 order came, there was buzz that the club and Gallops may settle for around R10 crore. That has been taken out of their hands by this latest judgment.

A former senior committee member said, "There is nothing really left to discuss. The BJR's has to cough up R18 crore and that is that. It is a scathing order and we (the club) could not have said it better ourselves."

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"The order is scathing to the extent to which the eatery has taken the RWITC for granted, or to use our racing terminology for a royal ride. At one stroke it has pre-empted the committee from still trying to settle at a fraction of its dues to the club. Justice has prevailed, and rightly so!" said Vivek Jain, former RWITC chairman.

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