Allahabad High Court Nullifies Greater Noida Authority’s Plot Cancellation Orders

NOIDA: The Allahabad High Court has struck down two separate orders issued by the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) canceling land allotments, marking a legal setback for the Authority. The court found that GNIDA failed to adhere to statutory deadlines and followed procedurally flawed processes.

The two cases involved high-stakes projects—one being a major IT/ITES development in Tech Zone II and the other a group housing project in Sector 10. Justice Prakash Padia, who delivered both verdicts earlier this month, reinstated the allotments, offering significant relief to the developers, Elevator Properties and Kinetic Buildtech.

Both firms had contested GNIDA’s cancellations, arguing in court that delays in the projects were due to the Authority’s own lapses.

In the first instance, GNIDA had cancelled a 25-acre IT/ITES plot on June 16, 2023, citing non-utilisation of the land, failure to obtain a completion certificate, and non-payment of dues.

Initially allotted in October 2007 to a consortium led by Anant Raj Industries Ltd., the plot was later leased to its subsidiary, Elevator Properties, in August 2010. Despite the passage of over a decade, no construction took place.

Elevator Properties petitioned the High Court in 2024, asserting that GNIDA’s failure to carry out essential external development work—such as roads, drainage, and services—rendered the land commercially unusable. The company also claimed that it had paid the full premium at the time of lease execution.

A crucial aspect of the case was the 2022 amendment to Section 7 of the Uttar Pradesh Industrial Area Development Act. Under the revised law, the Authority could only cancel non-utilised plots if a notice had been issued by September 30, 2022, requiring the allottee to complete construction by December 31, 2022. Plots not developed by that deadline would automatically stand cancelled.

However, GNIDA issued its notice only on January 3, 2023—after the statutory deadline had passed. Justice Padia ruled that by missing the notice deadline, GNIDA forfeited its authority under the amended law to carry out the cancellation.

He deemed the cancellation “wholly without jurisdiction” and “perverse,” and ordered the reinstatement of the allotment along with associated benefits for Elevator Properties.

The court also overruled an earlier order dated November 23, 2023, issued by the principal secretary of the industrial development department, which had upheld GNIDA’s action.

In the second case, the High Court quashed GNIDA’s 2017 cancellation of a five-acre group housing plot in Sector 10 that had been allotted to Kinetic Buildtech in May 2014. The developer filed a legal challenge in May 2023, arguing that the cancellation was unjustified.

The rulings underscore the judiciary’s position on adherence to due process and statutory timelines in land development disputes.