Shimla, Jan 4 (IANS): The Himachal Pradesh High Court Saturday reserved its order on the plea of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) to implead Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and others as respondents in its plea against the government's decision to cancel the lease granted to it for a stadium in Dharamsala.

A division bench of acting Chief Justice Mansoor Ahmad Mir and Justice Kuldip Singh was hearing a petition filed by HPCA, headed by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Anurag Thakur, against the government's decision to cancel the lease.

The government had stated that its decision dated Oct 26 last year to cancel the lease and to take control of HPCA's properties was withdrawn by it Nov 18 and on account of this development, most of the prayers made in the writ petition have become infructuous.

It also submitted that the chief minister and others are not necessarily parties as they are not concerned with the matter in their personal capacities. It also stated that the plea for amendment of writ petition is frivolous and meant merely to delay the proceedings and to remain in possession of the properties.

Earlier, the high court had indicted the government for forcible eviction of the HPCA from its stadia and ordered restoration of possession to it.

The court then ordered status quo ante with respect to the cabinet decision taking over the properties.

"The orders of forcible dispossession are against law, constitutional guarantee and obligations of the state to its citizens as a person in settled possession of a premises cannot be dispossessed by an executive fiat, even though he can be stated as a trespasser," the bench had observed.