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Supreme Court appoints former judge to identify genuine allottees in NOIDA housing dispute
The has intervened decisively in a protracted housing dispute that has dragged on for more than three decades, appointing a one-member committee headed by former judge Justice Sudhir Kumar Saxena to finally determine the of multi-storeyed flats in Noida.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V. Mohana passed the order on , citing the persistent deadlock between the and the (the Society) over the identification of genuine members.
Three Decades of Waiting
The dispute dates back to the 1990s when NOIDA allotted plots to members of the Society. Following cancellations in and subsequent refunds, litigation over the rights of and continued for years. In , the Supreme Court directed NOIDA to allot flats to 844 identified members and ordered examination of 133 . However, later applications revealed discrepancies, with revised figures fluctuating to 863 and 120 .
Despite repeated court directions, including a verification exercise ordered in , the process stalled. The Society accused NOIDA of inaction, while NOIDA resisted including , pointing to prohibitions on transfer in original allotment letters and the cancellation of allotments.
The Committee Solution
Recognizing that over three years had elapsed since the 2022 judgment and that original members had
"been awaiting the
for over three decades,"
the Court invoked its powers under
. It constituted a
chaired by Justice Saxena, granting it flexibility to devise its own procedure, summon documents, and hear claimants.
"The one-member Committee shall be at liberty to devise its own procedure, including calling for such documents and hearing the concerned members/claimants as it may consider necessary,"
the Court directed.
NOIDA has been instructed to provide full secretarial and logistical support. The committee is expected to complete its work within eight weeks and submit a report to the Court.
A Final Attempt at Resolution
The Court's order aims to break the impasse and deliver long-overdue justice. With the deadline set for for the next hearing, all eyes now turn to Justice Saxena’s committee to bring clarity to a dispute that has kept families waiting for homes for generations.
