TOI EXCLUSIVE: Delhi golfers demand practice rights at DGC, threaten protest at Jantar Mantar protest

NEW DELHI:
Two-time
Asian Tour
winner
and several of Delhi's prominent caddie-professional golfers have announced a sit-in protest at Jantar Mantar on May 5, as they seek the right to practice at the
Delhi Golf Club
(DGC) in the Capital.
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The golfers planning to join the protest are
PGTI
regulars from the Capital, including Honey Baisoya, Kapil Kumar, Chetan Baisoya, Pawan Verma, Ajay Baisoya, Shamim Khan, Nikhil Sharma and Wasim Khan, among others, TOI has learnt.
This move comes amid a longstanding impasse between the Delhi-based caddie-pros and the DGC. The dispute, ongoing for several years now, has already forced many pros to relocate to other courses or even consider quitting the sport, affecting their livelihoods.
A case is currently pending before the Delhi High Court, where the affected golfers seek judicial permission to practise at the DGC. The matter has been listed 30 times since Feb 4, 2020 without any hearing taking place thus far.
In September 2012, the government renewed the lease for the DGC until 2050 – eight years prior to the previous contract expiry. It was around this period in 2012 that DGC ceased permitting caddie-pros to practice at the course.
The protesting golfers contend that the club stands on a govt land and exists for the 'promotion and advancement' of golf as a sport and therefore believe that they should not be excluded from the premises for practice.
The golfers refer to a ministry of urban development (MUD) order from Feb 2020, instructing DGC that '10 percent of the total intake to 'Indian Business' categories may be reserved for memberships to professional golf players of all levels in DGC'.
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This directive was issued by the Land & Development officer, Anand Mohan, who stated that 'the selection of eligible candidates for membership under this category will be done by a committee comprising of secretary (urban development) as chairman, director general,
Sports Authority of India
(SAI) and joint secretary (L&E) as member'.
In its response to this publication, DGC informed that the last time membership under this provision was granted was to Arjuna awardee Ali Sher – notably, the first Indian pro to win the India Open in 1991 – in accordance with the Articles of Association of the DGC.
Since then, no Delhi-based pro golfers have received membership to practice at the club.
'Golfers have been restricted to practice at the DGC since May 2019. They don't have access to the golf course. I stay in Delhi and the only golf course close to me is DGC. Same is the case with other golfers who have been fighting for their playing rights. The DGC course was leased by the govt for promoting and encouraging the sport of golf, but the course is now merely for the members and not for players.
I am just asking for playing rights to go and practice for myself and my fellow golfers,' Rashid told TOI.
'The DGC has a provision to reserve 10 percent of their membership quotas for pro golfers. But they have stopped offering it for years. The club is also situated on govt land and is meant for the promotion of golf. How could they stop the city-based pro golfers from practicing citing their arbitrary rules?' Rashid questioned.
In May 2019, Rashid and other local professionals were detained by the Delhi Police after being denied entry to the DGC. They were taken to Tughlaq Road police station before being released hours later. A 2021 Tokyo Games Olympian and 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games silver medallist, Rashid has been practising at the facility since 1999 during his junior years until access was barred in 2019 for him and other caddie-pros.
'The DGC is a private members' club and even a non-member can play golf by paying the green fee and obtaining a casual membership for the day. However, every person, whether member or otherwise, must maintain discipline within the precincts of the DGC. The playing privileges are subject to the MOA & AOA of the DGC,' Lt. Col Rohit Singh (retd), secretary, DGC, stated in response.
'There is no rule that gives Rashid or anyone the right to practice at the DGC.
Permission to play at the DGC is the sole discretion of the DGC. The general committee of the DGC vide its resolution passed in its meeting held on 11 Feb 2019 had banned the entry of Arun Baisoya, Rajat Baisoya, Sunny Nagar, Nikhil Sharma, Bharat Sharma and Chetan Baisoya on account of gross indiscipline. It was also decided that all playing rights granted to Rashid be withdrawn with immediate effect,' Singh added.
'Regarding the query whether DGC is situated on a govt land, at the outset, it's submitted that in the judgment dated 19.04.2021 in The DGC Vs The DGC Employees Union, the High Court held that the DGC is a private members recreational club which is governed by its own Memorandum & Articles of Association.
There is no funding from the govt nor is there any administrative dominance or control over the affairs of the DGC. The funds are generated through membership and subscription fee and revenue earned from golf and thus there is no financial control of the govt. The mere execution of a lease deed by the government with respect to the land is not enough to confer the status of a State or instrumentality of the State or a public authority.
The DGC is neither State nor instrumentality of State nor other authority. Further it has been held that it does not perform any public function,' Singh further stated.

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