In Brief
The Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) allotted a house to Machhla Devi under a hire-purchase scheme in 1994, but she defaulted on payments and the allotment was cancelled. A High Court coordinate Bench upheld the cancellation in 2016. Despite this, another High Court coordinate Bench later passed an order in her favour without notice to the GDA, effectively nullifying the 2016 judgment. The Supreme Court held that this approach violated judicial propriety and natural justice. The Court found that the allottee had unlawfully occupied public property for 14 years without full payment, constituting unjust enrichment. The eviction order was upheld as a lawful exercise of due process following a valid prior judicial pronouncement."
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