Supreme Court appoints retired judge to resolve 30-year Noida housing dispute

In a fresh bid to resolve a prolonged housing society dispute in Noida, the Supreme Court has appointed a retired High Court judge to lead a committee tasked with verifying genuine members and determining their eligibility for flat allocations. The move comes as the contentious matter remains unresolved more than 30 years after it first emerged, despite an earlier Supreme Court judgment delivered in 2022 that was meant to provide finality.

The single-member committee has been mandated to examine membership credentials and ascertain which residents qualify for residential units in the housing society. The committee's composition and terms of reference suggest the court's intent to establish an objective, judicial mechanism to cut through the tangled claims and counterclaims that have stalled the matter.

The appointment reflects growing judicial concern over the stalled resolution of the dispute, which has affected numerous residents and raised questions about implementation of court orders in real estate matters. Housing societies and cooperative housing projects in the National Capital Region have increasingly become flashpoints for protracted legal battles over allotment eligibility and membership rights.

The former High Court judge's committee is expected to bring a degree of judicial scrutiny and credibility to the verification process. The exercise is likely to involve examining historical records, membership applications, and payment histories to establish each claimant's bonafides and eligibility status under the society's original bylaws and allotment criteria.