Unsavoury State Of Affairs Cannot Continue Indefinitely: Supreme Court Constitutes Committee To Resolve 20-Yr-Old Fraudulent Housing Scheme Case

The Supreme Court has constituted a Committee to resolve a 20-year-old case of fraudulent housing scheme involving the office bearers of Golf Course Sahkari Awas Samiti.

Special Leave Petitions (SLPs) were preferred against the Judgment of the Allahabad High Court, by which a Writ Petition was disposed of without granting any substantive relief as sought for.

The two-Judge Bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta remarked, “We are of the considered view that this unsavoury state of affairs cannot be allowed to continue indefinitely, and the issue has to be taken to its logical conclusion. While it is imperative to ensure some measure of relief to the genuine allottees, it is equally important to guard against any fraudster or imposter staking a false claim on the legitimate entitlement of the genuine allottees, thereby, taking undue advantage of the prevailing uncertainty.”

The Bench said that the original allotees who dreamt of a roof over their heads have been struggling in a losing cause for the last nearly 20 years.

Senior Advocate Meenakshi Arora represented the Petitioners, while Senior Advocates Ravindra Kumar and Vishwajit Singh represented the Respondents.

Facts of the Case

The Petitioners were the allottees in a Group Housing Project undertaken by Golf Course Sahkari Awas Samiti (previously, JP Greens Employees Sahkari Awas Samiti), which was formed in 2004 and registered as a housing co-operative society under Section 7 of Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Societies Act, 1965. The said Samiti filed an application with Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA), seeking an allotment of land. The same was allotted for flat-based development, stipulating payment of 30% of the lease amount within 60 days and the balance 70% in eight half-yearly instalments. Pursuantly, GNIDA executed a lease deed in favour of Samiti and the approved plan of the housing society envisaged four towers with two towers having 4 flats on each floor and other two floors having 3 flats on each floor. In total, the Housing Society was to comprise approximately 140 (±5%) flats along with 2 shops.

Advertisements were issued in the newspapers and brochures were circulated, projecting the development of a luxury residential complex under the name of “Shiv Kala Charms” on the said plot. The Petitioners applied for the same and the housing project was pre-approved for housing loan by various banks. Consequently, GNIDA issued a letter in July 2010 calling upon the Samiti to pay Rs. 3,14,42,238/- and since it failed to comply, a final show cause notice was issued. Ultimately, the lease deed was cancelled and several complaints were lodged by the homebuyers with the authorities. They alleged large-scale siphoning and diversion of funds by the office bearers of the Samiti in collusion with the developer. A criminal complaint was filed, which led to registration of an FIR. Thereafter, a Writ Petition was filed before the High Court, which did not grant any substantive relief. Being aggrieved, the Petitioners approached the Apex Court.

Court’s Observations

The Supreme Court in view of the facts and circumstances of the case, observed, “It is apparent that the petitioners/applicants/allottees have endured immense hardship for all this time apart from losing their hard-earned money and have been embroiled in administrative log-jam and prolonged litigation. Despite pursuing remedies before various fora, their grievances remain unredressed.”

The Court added that even after nearly two decades of booking their flats and making payments, some by taking loans from financial institutions, the allottees have been unable to take possession, as construction has remained stalled since September 9, 2011, i.e., from the date of cancelling of lease deed by GNIDA, owing to the fraudulent acts and irregularities committed by the office bearers of the Samiti/Society and the developer.

“… this Court is of the opinion that the matter has assumed considerable administrative magnitude and intricacy. The overlapping issues of restoration of lease, identification of genuine allottees, proportional determination of land dues, and feasibility of completing the stalled construction necessitate a comprehensive, structured, and impartial examination under the supervision of an independent fact-finding authority. Resolution of all these issues seems unlikely if not impossible in the proceedings under Article 136 of the Constitution of India”, it noted.

The Court was of the view that constitution of an independent Committee under the aegis of a former Judge has become indispensable to ensure an expeditious and efficacious resolution.

“Hence, we are inclined to form a one-Judge Committee, headed by Hon’ble Retd. Judge of High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, to undertake a detailed enquiry into the entire factual matrix and give suggestions for a suitable resolution. … On our request, Hon’ble Mr. Justice Pankaj Naqvi, Judge (Retd.), High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, has graciously agreed to conduct the requisite enquiry”, it said.

The Court directed that upon completion of the enquiry, the Committee shall submit a detailed report setting out its findings, conclusions, and recommendations, thereby facilitating the final resolution of the matter.

“The Committee would endeavor to submit its report to this Court in a sealed cover within a period of four months from the date of the commencement of its effective functioning. The State of Uttar Pradesh; GNIDA; Housing Commissioner, UP Awas Evam Vikas Parishad; District Magistrate, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Uttar Pradesh; all banks/financial institutions, i.e., respondent Nos. 10 to 19 and all the petitioners as well as other allottees who have filed intervention applications before this Court or otherwise, shall extend full assistance and cooperation to the Committee for facilitating the enquiry and to ensure timely submission of the report. The expenses for travel and incidental expenses for the sittings of the Committee shall be borne equally by the allottees on the one hand and State of Uttar Pradesh on the other”, it further ordered.

Conclusion

The Court also clarified that the Committee shall be entitled to formulate its own modalities and procedure for conducting the enquiry and enquiry proceedings shall be equally borne by the allottees on the one hand and State of Uttar Pradesh on the other.

“The parties shall ensure that appropriate facilities are provided for the conduct of the enquiry. … The logistic arrangements for the Committee shall be completed on or before 21st November, 2025. … The parties shall be entitled to appropriate representation in the proceedings to be conducted by the Committee”, it concluded.

Accordingly, the Apex Court directed the State of Uttar Pradesh and GNIDA to publish a public notice regarding the constitution and functioning of the Committee.

Cause Title- Ravi Prakash Srivastava & Ors. v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Ors. (Neutral Citation: 2025 INSC 1291)

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