Chandigarh, March 10 -- The Punjab and Haryana high court has taken suo motu note of the exorbitant prices of plots and houses being offered by government instrumentalities in the tricity - Greater Mohali Development Authority (GMADA), Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) and Chandigarh Housing Board (CHB). "It appears that the states have started indulging in profiteering, leaving the common man in the lurch. The prices of the residential plots/flats being auctioned are exorbitant," the bench of justice Anupinder Singh Grewal and justice Deepak Manchanda observed on Monday. The court was hearing a petition related to housing and urban development from a Haryana resident, Sheenam Singla, during which the suo motu note was taken. Incidentally, it was the last day of justice Grewal in office. The court observed that it had come to its notice that the prices at which the residential plots or flats were being auctioned by the HSVP/GMADA/CHB in the tricity of Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali were out of reach of the professional, salaried class and other not-so affluent sections of society, including the middle class. These government instrumentalities initially had various schemes for allotment of plots by way of draw of lots, but now had opted to auction the residential plots, deviating themselves from the real object of their statute, the bench said. "We have also noticed that the aforesaid government instrumentalities are cash rich and have plenty of reserves in their kitty, but instead of utilising them for providing affordable housing to the everyday citizen and middle class, they are putting residential plots and flats to auction where the minimum bid amount(s) are exorbitant and running into crores, which is beyond the range of middle class," the bench observed, while noting that Article 21 of the Constitution of India guarantees the right to life and liberty, which includes the right to shelter and affordable housing. Hence, it is the bounden duty of the state(s) to provide affordable housing. The court also referred to an earlier observation of the bench where it was stated that the state authorities, instead of providing affordable housing at affordable rates, were now auctioning residential plot/flat at exorbitant rates with a profit driven mindset. The court further noted that earlier there used to be a restriction that only one person in a family was eligible for allotment of residential plot/flat. "The restriction appeared to have been done away with and we have come across several instances where one single person has applied and has been allotted multiple residential plot(s)/flat(s) in the auction," it added. Hence, the governments of Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh have been told to put forth a proposal for advising the object of affordable housing by taking other measures including draw of lots, for all sections of society, including the salaried/middle class by March 24....