SC urges NGT to hear parties before passing adverse orders in suo motu matters

The Supreme Court has clarified that the National Green Tribunal is enjoined to hear parties before issuing any adverse order in all cases, including those related to suo motu matters

A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and C T Ravikumar issued the clarification in light of its October 7 judgement.

The top court had then declared that National Green Tribunal has been vested with the power to take suo motu cognisance on issues pertaining to environment, as the role of the watchdog can't remain only ornamental due to procedural nitpicking and hairsplitting.

It had then rejected a contention that the NGT was a statutory body and could not act suo motu like a constitutional court, saying the tribunal with the distinct role envisaged for it, can hardly afford to remain a mute spectator when no-one knocks on its door.

On October 25, the two-judge bench relegated a number of petitioners, including Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, to the NGT allowing them to file their respective applications, following the pronouncement of October 7 judgement with regard to the green tribunal's suo motu power.

It asked the tribunals to consider the matters afresh.

"The judgment rendered by this court predicates that even if the tribunal intends to initiate suo motu action, must give opportunity to the parties likely to be affected before passing any adverse order against them. Viewed thus, the ex-parte preemptory orders passed by the tribunal without giving opportunity to the persons likely to be affected by such orders, be treated as effaced from the record," the bench said.

On August 7, 2018, the NGT took suo motu cognisance of an article titled “Garbage Gangs of Deonar: The Kingpins and Their Multi-Crore Trade” in an online news portal. The article spoke of how mismanagement of solid waste had an adverse impact on the environment, public health and lives of individuals living in the vicinity of the dumping ground in Mumbai city. It made article author Ankita Sinha as applicant and directed inspection of dumping site by the representative of the Central Pollution Control Board, Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, the District Collector of the area and also the representative of the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai.

As the inspecting team highlighted the landfill site failed to comply with the provisions of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, the NGT had on October 30, 2018, said damage to the environment and public health is self-evident and ordered MCGM to pay compensation to the tune of Rs five crores.

With this, the matter was raised before the top court, contending that the NGT had no power to exercise suo motu jurisdiction. The court had then stayed the NGT's order.

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