Residents, tenants, and stakeholders of the Ambience Island project in Gurugram received relief as the Supreme Court overturned a Punjab and Haryana High Court judgment. The High Court had invalidated approvals for the project and ordered a CBI probe, a decision now set aside by the apex court. The Ambience Group’s appeals were accepted, emphasizing errors in the High Court’s interference with land delicensing and relicensing for the integrated township.
The Supreme Court’s ruling also halted proceedings at the National Green Tribunal until the High Court resolves a writ petition from certain homebuyers. The controversy stemmed from allegations that residential land at Ambience Island was used for commercial towers, leading to the High Court’s annulment of approvals and a CBI investigation in 2020. The apex court criticized the High Court’s broad conclusions of illegality and collusion, deeming them unsustainable based on the evidence.
Highlighting that the term “delicensing” was within the legal framework, the Supreme Court rejected the characterization of the process as fraudulent. It emphasized the need for established criteria before initiating a criminal investigation. The court clarified that new challenges by homebuyers against DTCP findings would be independently assessed by the High Court. The Ambience Group was represented by notable advocates before the Supreme Court, including Mukul Rohatgi and Abhishek Manu Singhvi.
