1. Multiple interim applications concerning forest conservation, mining operations, sawmills, and alleged assault on informant. (Para 3 , 5 , 7 , 11 , 14 )
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2007 Supreme(SC) 1812
SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
K.G. Balakrishnan, CJI., Arijit Pasayat and Mr. S.H. Kapadia, JJ.
T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad - Petitioner
Versus
Union of India & Ors. - Respondents
I.A. Nos. 826 In 566 with 955 in 566, 958,985, 1001-1001A, 1013-1014, 1016-1018, 1019, 1046, 1047, 1135-1136, 1137, 1164, 1180-1181, 1182-1183, 1196, 1208-1209, 1222-1223, 1224-1225, 1229, 1233 in 1135-1136, 1248-1249, 1253, 1301-1302, 1303-1304, 1312, 1313, 1314, 1318, 1319 in 1137, 1325, 1364, 1365-1366, 1370-1370A, 1371, 1384, 1385-1386, 1387, 1434, 1435-1437, 1438, 1441, 1475-1476, 1513, 1573, 1634, 1639 in 1135-1136 in IA 566, 1664, 1665, 1671, 1676 in IA 566, 1707, 1721 in 1597 in 566, 1779 in 1164 in 566, 1785- 1786 in I.A.No.1441, 2013 and 2074-2076 in 566 in W.P.(C)No.202/1995.
Decided On : 12-10-2007
Advocates Appeared:
For the Parties :- Mr. Harish N. Salve, Sr. Adv. (A.C.) Mr. U.U. Lalit, Sr. Adv. (A.C.) Mr. Siddhartha Chowdhury, Adv.(A.C.)
For the Appearing Parties :- IA 1500/06 Mr. Arun Jaitly, Sr. Adv. Mr. Mukul Rohtagi, Sr. Adv. Mr. Ciccu Mukopadyay, Adv. Mr. Shambhu Prasad Singh, Adv. Ms. Manjula Gupta, Adv. Mr. R.N. Karanjawala, Adv. Ms. Nandini Gore, Adv. Mr. Debmalya Banerjee, Adv. Ms. Sonia Nigam, Adv.
For the Tata Steel Ltd. IA 2055-56 :- Ms. Manik Karanjawala, Adv. Mr. Ranjit Kumar, Sr. Adv. (A.C.) Mr. Saket Agarwal, Adv. Mr.Vivek Gupta, Adv. Mr. A.P. Mohanty, Adv. Mr. P.K. Pattnaik, Adv.
For the A &N Islands SSWB Industries Association :- Mr. M. Ravindran, Sr. Adv. Mr. A.M. Pattiyani, Adv. Mr. G. Ramakrishnan, Adv. Mr. S.P. Sharma, Adv. Mr. Kamal Gupta, Adv. (A.C.)
For the Appearing Parties in IA 908 :- Mr. Raju Ramachandran, Sr. Adv.(A&N Islands) Ms. Pia Singh, Adv. Ms. Priyanka Sharma, Adv. Ms. Shiraz Patodia, Adv.
For the Petitioner-in-person M/s. Lawyer's Knit & Co. Advs. in 985, and 1016-1018 Mr. Sunil Dogra, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in UOI :- Mr. G.E. Vahanvati, SG Mr. Haris Beeran, Adv. Mr. Hrishikesh Baruah, Adv. Mr. P. Parmeswaran, Adv.
For the M/o Defence :- Mr. P.S. Patwalia, Sr. Adv. Mr. S. Wasim A. Qadri, Adv. Mr. Aman Singh, Adv. Mr. R.C. Kathia, Adv. Mr. D.S. Mahra, Adv. Mrs. Rekha Pandey, Adv. Ms. Shweta Shukla, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in W.P.(C) 551/97 :- Mr. Prashant Bhushan, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA No.1710-1712 & IA 932,1707,1798 :- Mr. Mukul Rohtagi, Sr. Adv.Mr. Ajay Sharma, Adv.
For the St of M.P. in IA 1201 & NPV matters :- Mr. B.S. Banthia, Adv. Mr. Vikas Upadhyay, Adv. Mr. Rajiv Dhawan, Sr. Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1164 :- Mr. Ajit Pudussery, Adv. Mr. K. Vijayanan, Adv.
For the Appearing Parities in IA 1704-1706 :- Dr. Rajeev Dhawan, Sr. Adv. Mr. Vivek Gupta, Adv. Mr. Saket Agarwal, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties IA 1980-81 :- Mr. Vivek K. Tankha, Sr. Adv. Ms. Ratna Kaul, Adv. Mr. Prashant Kumar, Adv. Mr. Anurag Sharma, Adv.
For the M/s. AP & J Chambers, Advs. in IAs 2024-26, 2027-29, 2030- 32, 2033-35, 2036-38, 2039-41, 2042-44, 2045-47, 2048-50 and 2051-53 :- Sri Rajeev Dutta, Sr. Adv. Mr. Vivek Gupta, Adv. Mr. Saket Agarwal, Adv.
For the Parties State of Rajasthan :- Mr. Aruneshwar Gupta, AAG M/s. Naveen Kumar Singh, Shashwat Gupta, Advs.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1248-49 :- Mr. V.A. Mohta, Sr. Adv. Mr. G.T. Gilda, Adv. Mr. Manish Pitale, Adv. Mr. Nilkanta Nayak, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1435-1437 :- Mr. R.A. Malankar, Adv. Mr. S.C. Patel, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1993 and 2152 :- Mr. Dhruv Mehta, Adv. Mr. Harshvardhan Jha, Adv. Mr. Yashraj Singh Deora, Adv. M/s. M.L. Mehta & Co. Advs.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 2013 :- Mr. Neeraj Malhotra, Adv. Mr. Nikhil Nayyar, Adv. Mr. Ankit Singhal, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1196 :- Mr. S. Sukumaran, Adv. Mr. A. Deb Kumar, Adv. Mr. K. Rajeev, Adv. IA 780 Mr. Maninder Singh, Adv. Ms. Prathiba M.Singh, Adv. Mr. Gaurav Sharma, Adv. Mr. Sumeet Bhatia, Adv. Ms. Surbhi Mehta, Adv. Mr. Manu Nair, Adv.
For M/s. S.A. Shroff & Co. Advs. in IA 980/03 :- Mr. P. Ramesh Kumar, Adv. Ms. Aparna Bhat, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties IA 7801 :- Mr. R.D. Kewalramani, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties IA 2074-2076 :- Mr. Mahesh Syal, Adv. Mr. Vikas Mahajan, Adv. Mr. D.B. Vohra, Adv.
For the State of Pb. :- Mr. Kuldip Singh, Adv. Mr. R.K. Pandey, Adv. Mr. Sanjay Katyal, Adv. Mr. T.P. Mishra, Adv.
For the State of Haryana :- Mr. Manjit Singh, AAG Mr. T.V. George, Adv.
For the State of A.P. :- Mr. L. Nageswar Rao, Sr. Adv. Mr. Manoj Saxena, Adv. Mr. Rahul Shukla, Adv. Mr. T.V. George, Adv. Mr. Pramod Dayal, Adv. Mr. Nikunj Dayal, Adv. Mr. Pradeep Misra, Adv.
For the State of Bihar :- Mr. Gopal Singh, Adv. Mr. Anukul Raj, Adv. Mr. Rituraj Biswas, Adv.
For the State of Tripura :- Mr. Gopal Singh, Adv. Mr. Rituraj Biswas, Adv. Mr. Anukul Raj, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties Ranchi Assn. :- Mr. Bhavanishankar V. Gadnis, Adv. Mrs. B. Suntia Rao, Adv.
For the State of Arunachal Pardesh :- Mr. Anil Shrivastav, Adv. Mr. Ritu Raj, Adv.
For the State of Manipur :- Kh. Nobin Singh, Adv. Mr. Tarun Jamwal, Adv. Mr. S. Biswajit Meitei, Adv.
For the State of Orissa :- Mr. Jana Kalyan Das, Adv. Mr. Avijeet Bhujabal, Adv. Ms. Momta Oniom, Adv.
For the M/s. Corporate Law Group, Advs. in IA 1224-25 :- Mr. Sanjay Sen, Adv. Mr. Rana S. Biswas, Adv. Mr. Manish P.S. Chouhan, Adv. Ms. Ruchika Rathi, Adv. Ms. Sarla Chandra, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1428 :- Mr. Anil Karnwal, Adv. Dr. Sushil Balwada, Adv.
For the State of Goa :- Ms. A. Subhashini, Adv.
For the State of Kerala :- Mr. G. Prakash, Adv.
For the State of Mizoram :- Mr. K.N. Madhusoodhanan, Adv. Mr. R. Sathish, Adv.
For the State of Chhattisgarh :- Ms. Suparna Srivastava, Adv. Ms. Nidhi Minocha, Adv. Mr. Rajesh Srivastava, Adv.
For the State of U.P. :- Mr. S.K. Dwivedi, AAG. Mr. S.W.A. Quadari, Adv. Mr. Anil Kumar Jha, Adv. Ms. Vandana Mishra, Adv. Mr. V.P. Singh, Adv. Mr. Sandeep Singh, Adv.
For the MCD :- Mr. Sanjiv Sen, Adv. Mr. Praveen Swarup, Adv.
For the HSIDC in IA 1164 :- Mr. Ravindra Bana, Adv. Dr. Rajeev Dhawan, Sr. Adv. Mr. Ajit Pudussery, Adv. Mr. K. Uijayan, Adv. Mrs. Hemantika Wahi, Adv. Ms. Shivangi, Adv. Ms. Pinky, Adv. Mr. Raj Kumar Gupta, Adv. Mr. Arun Yadav, Adv. Mr. A.N. Baradaiyar, Adv. Mr. S.B. Upadhyay, Sr. Adv. M/s. RR Dubey, Sudhir Ojha, Shiv Mangal Sharma, Shubhra Goyal, Advs. Ms. Sharmila Upadhyay, Adv.
NCT of Delhi & St of Maharashtra :- Mrs. Asha G. Nair, Adv.Mr. A.P. Mayee, Adv.
For the NCRPB :- Ms. Sheel Sethi, Adv.
For the NDMC :- Mr. Rakesh Kumar Khanna, Sr. Adv. Dr. Rashmi Khanna, Adv. Mr. Surya Kant, Adv. Mr. Pranav Vyas, Adv. Mrs. Shalija Sinha, Adv. Mr. Neeraj Kumar Sharma, Adv. Mr. Sudhir Kr. Ohja, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 566 :- Ms. Aruna Gupta, Adv. Ms. Sumita Hazaria, Adv. Mr. P.K. Manohar, Adv. Ms. Rachna Srivastava, Adv. Mr. S.K. Sinha, Adv. Mr. V. Balachandran, Adv. Mr. Sanjiv Sen, Adv. Mr. Subhash Bansal, Adv. Mr. V.N. Rathupathy, Adv. Mr. Vijay Kumar, Adv. Mr. Sanjay R. Hegde, Adv. Mr. S.C. Patel, Adv. Mr. K.R. Sasiprabhu, Adv. Ms. Sangeeta Kumar, Adv. Mr. Badri Prasad Singh, Adv., Mr. Sanjeev Kumar, Adv. Ms. Sarla, Chandra, Adv. Mr. Mukesh K. Giri, Adv. Mr. V.A. Mohta, Sr. Adv. Mr. J.T. Gilda, Adv. Mr. Manish Pitale, Adv. Mr. Nilkanta Nayak, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties :- Mr. C.S. Ashri, Adv. Mr. Raj Kumar Mehta, Adv. Mr. Ajit Kr. Sinha, Adv. Mr. Harish Kumar Puri, Adv. Mr. Himinder Lal, Adv. Ms. Anil Katiyar, Adv. Mr. B.K. Prasad, Adv. Mr. J.K. Das, Adv. Mr. B. Parthasarthi, Adv. Mr. V.B. Joshi, Adv. Mr. P.V. Dinesh, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1233 :- Mr. R.P. Bhatt, Sr. Adv. Mr. Mukesh Kumar, Adv. Mrs. Mahima C. Shroff, Adv. Mr. Chirag M. Shroff, Adv. Mr. J.K. Dass, Adv. Mr. Ajay Pal, Adv. Mr. Nikhil Nayyar, Adv. Mr. J.P. Dabral (Applicant in person) Mr. D.K. Garg, Adv. Mr. Amit Kumar, Adv. M/s. K.J. John & Co. M/s. Gagrat & Co. Mr. Vishwajit Singh, Adv. Mr. C.N. Sreekumar, Adv. Mr. C.L. Sahu, Adv. Ms. Bina Tamta, Adv. Mr. S.N. Bhat, Adv. Mr. Shashi Bhushan, Adv. Mr. Anil Kr. Sanghal, Adv. Ms. Ruby Singh Ahuja, Adv. Mr. Ramesh N. Keshwani, Adv. Mr. Navin R. Nath, Adv. Mr. Tara Chand Sharma, Adv. Mr. Avijit Bhattacharjee, Adv. Dr. Kailash Chand, Adv. Mr. T. Mahipal, Adv.
For the Parties :- Mr. Harish N. Salve, Sr. Adv. (A.C.) Mr. U.U. Lalit, Sr. Adv. (A.C.) Mr. Siddhartha Chowdhury, Adv.(A.C.)
For the Appearing Parties :- IA 1500/06 Mr. Arun Jaitly, Sr. Adv. Mr. Mukul Rohtagi, Sr. Adv. Mr. Ciccu Mukopadyay, Adv. Mr. Shambhu Prasad Singh, Adv. Ms. Manjula Gupta, Adv. Mr. R.N. Karanjawala, Adv. Ms. Nandini Gore, Adv. Mr. Debmalya Banerjee, Adv. Ms. Sonia Nigam, Adv.
For the Tata Steel Ltd. IA 2055-56 :- Ms. Manik Karanjawala, Adv. Mr. Ranjit Kumar, Sr. Adv. (A.C.) Mr. Saket Agarwal, Adv. Mr.Vivek Gupta, Adv. Mr. A.P. Mohanty, Adv. Mr. P.K. Pattnaik, Adv.
For the A &N Islands SSWB Industries Association :- Mr. M. Ravindran, Sr. Adv. Mr. A.M. Pattiyani, Adv. Mr. G. Ramakrishnan, Adv. Mr. S.P. Sharma, Adv. Mr. Kamal Gupta, Adv. (A.C.)
For the Appearing Parties in IA 908 :- Mr. Raju Ramachandran, Sr. Adv.(A&N Islands) Ms. Pia Singh, Adv. Ms. Priyanka Sharma, Adv. Ms. Shiraz Patodia, Adv.
For the Petitioner-in-person M/s. Lawyer's Knit & Co. Advs. in 985, and 1016-1018 Mr. Sunil Dogra, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in UOI :- Mr. G.E. Vahanvati, SG Mr. Haris Beeran, Adv. Mr. Hrishikesh Baruah, Adv. Mr. P. Parmeswaran, Adv.
For the M/o Defence :- Mr. P.S. Patwalia, Sr. Adv. Mr. S. Wasim A. Qadri, Adv. Mr. Aman Singh, Adv. Mr. R.C. Kathia, Adv. Mr. D.S. Mahra, Adv. Mrs. Rekha Pandey, Adv. Ms. Shweta Shukla, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in W.P.(C) 551/97 :- Mr. Prashant Bhushan, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA No.1710-1712 & IA 932,1707,1798 :- Mr. Mukul Rohtagi, Sr. Adv.Mr. Ajay Sharma, Adv.
For the St of M.P. in IA 1201 & NPV matters :- Mr. B.S. Banthia, Adv. Mr. Vikas Upadhyay, Adv. Mr. Rajiv Dhawan, Sr. Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1164 :- Mr. Ajit Pudussery, Adv. Mr. K. Vijayanan, Adv.
For the Appearing Parities in IA 1704-1706 :- Dr. Rajeev Dhawan, Sr. Adv. Mr. Vivek Gupta, Adv. Mr. Saket Agarwal, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties IA 1980-81 :- Mr. Vivek K. Tankha, Sr. Adv. Ms. Ratna Kaul, Adv. Mr. Prashant Kumar, Adv. Mr. Anurag Sharma, Adv.
For the M/s. AP & J Chambers, Advs. in IAs 2024-26, 2027-29, 2030- 32, 2033-35, 2036-38, 2039-41, 2042-44, 2045-47, 2048-50 and 2051-53 :- Sri Rajeev Dutta, Sr. Adv. Mr. Vivek Gupta, Adv. Mr. Saket Agarwal, Adv.
For the Parties State of Rajasthan :- Mr. Aruneshwar Gupta, AAG M/s. Naveen Kumar Singh, Shashwat Gupta, Advs.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1248-49 :- Mr. V.A. Mohta, Sr. Adv. Mr. G.T. Gilda, Adv. Mr. Manish Pitale, Adv. Mr. Nilkanta Nayak, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1435-1437 :- Mr. R.A. Malankar, Adv. Mr. S.C. Patel, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1993 and 2152 :- Mr. Dhruv Mehta, Adv. Mr. Harshvardhan Jha, Adv. Mr. Yashraj Singh Deora, Adv. M/s. M.L. Mehta & Co. Advs.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 2013 :- Mr. Neeraj Malhotra, Adv. Mr. Nikhil Nayyar, Adv. Mr. Ankit Singhal, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1196 :- Mr. S. Sukumaran, Adv. Mr. A. Deb Kumar, Adv. Mr. K. Rajeev, Adv. IA 780 Mr. Maninder Singh, Adv. Ms. Prathiba M.Singh, Adv. Mr. Gaurav Sharma, Adv. Mr. Sumeet Bhatia, Adv. Ms. Surbhi Mehta, Adv. Mr. Manu Nair, Adv.
For M/s. S.A. Shroff & Co. Advs. in IA 980/03 :- Mr. P. Ramesh Kumar, Adv. Ms. Aparna Bhat, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties IA 7801 :- Mr. R.D. Kewalramani, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties IA 2074-2076 :- Mr. Mahesh Syal, Adv. Mr. Vikas Mahajan, Adv. Mr. D.B. Vohra, Adv.
For the State of Pb. :- Mr. Kuldip Singh, Adv. Mr. R.K. Pandey, Adv. Mr. Sanjay Katyal, Adv. Mr. T.P. Mishra, Adv.
For the State of Haryana :- Mr. Manjit Singh, AAG Mr. T.V. George, Adv.
For the State of A.P. :- Mr. L. Nageswar Rao, Sr. Adv. Mr. Manoj Saxena, Adv. Mr. Rahul Shukla, Adv. Mr. T.V. George, Adv. Mr. Pramod Dayal, Adv. Mr. Nikunj Dayal, Adv. Mr. Pradeep Misra, Adv.
For the State of Bihar :- Mr. Gopal Singh, Adv. Mr. Anukul Raj, Adv. Mr. Rituraj Biswas, Adv.
For the State of Tripura :- Mr. Gopal Singh, Adv. Mr. Rituraj Biswas, Adv. Mr. Anukul Raj, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties Ranchi Assn. :- Mr. Bhavanishankar V. Gadnis, Adv. Mrs. B. Suntia Rao, Adv.
For the State of Arunachal Pardesh :- Mr. Anil Shrivastav, Adv. Mr. Ritu Raj, Adv.
For the State of Manipur :- Kh. Nobin Singh, Adv. Mr. Tarun Jamwal, Adv. Mr. S. Biswajit Meitei, Adv.
For the State of Orissa :- Mr. Jana Kalyan Das, Adv. Mr. Avijeet Bhujabal, Adv. Ms. Momta Oniom, Adv.
For the M/s. Corporate Law Group, Advs. in IA 1224-25 :- Mr. Sanjay Sen, Adv. Mr. Rana S. Biswas, Adv. Mr. Manish P.S. Chouhan, Adv. Ms. Ruchika Rathi, Adv. Ms. Sarla Chandra, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1428 :- Mr. Anil Karnwal, Adv. Dr. Sushil Balwada, Adv.
For the State of Goa :- Ms. A. Subhashini, Adv.
For the State of Kerala :- Mr. G. Prakash, Adv.
For the State of Mizoram :- Mr. K.N. Madhusoodhanan, Adv. Mr. R. Sathish, Adv.
For the State of Chhattisgarh :- Ms. Suparna Srivastava, Adv. Ms. Nidhi Minocha, Adv. Mr. Rajesh Srivastava, Adv.
For the State of U.P. :- Mr. S.K. Dwivedi, AAG. Mr. S.W.A. Quadari, Adv. Mr. Anil Kumar Jha, Adv. Ms. Vandana Mishra, Adv. Mr. V.P. Singh, Adv. Mr. Sandeep Singh, Adv.
For the MCD :- Mr. Sanjiv Sen, Adv. Mr. Praveen Swarup, Adv.
For the HSIDC in IA 1164 :- Mr. Ravindra Bana, Adv. Dr. Rajeev Dhawan, Sr. Adv. Mr. Ajit Pudussery, Adv. Mr. K. Uijayan, Adv. Mrs. Hemantika Wahi, Adv. Ms. Shivangi, Adv. Ms. Pinky, Adv. Mr. Raj Kumar Gupta, Adv. Mr. Arun Yadav, Adv. Mr. A.N. Baradaiyar, Adv. Mr. S.B. Upadhyay, Sr. Adv. M/s. RR Dubey, Sudhir Ojha, Shiv Mangal Sharma, Shubhra Goyal, Advs. Ms. Sharmila Upadhyay, Adv.
NCT of Delhi & St of Maharashtra :- Mrs. Asha G. Nair, Adv.Mr. A.P. Mayee, Adv.
For the NCRPB :- Ms. Sheel Sethi, Adv.
For the NDMC :- Mr. Rakesh Kumar Khanna, Sr. Adv. Dr. Rashmi Khanna, Adv. Mr. Surya Kant, Adv. Mr. Pranav Vyas, Adv. Mrs. Shalija Sinha, Adv. Mr. Neeraj Kumar Sharma, Adv. Mr. Sudhir Kr. Ohja, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 566 :- Ms. Aruna Gupta, Adv. Ms. Sumita Hazaria, Adv. Mr. P.K. Manohar, Adv. Ms. Rachna Srivastava, Adv. Mr. S.K. Sinha, Adv. Mr. V. Balachandran, Adv. Mr. Sanjiv Sen, Adv. Mr. Subhash Bansal, Adv. Mr. V.N. Rathupathy, Adv. Mr. Vijay Kumar, Adv. Mr. Sanjay R. Hegde, Adv. Mr. S.C. Patel, Adv. Mr. K.R. Sasiprabhu, Adv. Ms. Sangeeta Kumar, Adv. Mr. Badri Prasad Singh, Adv., Mr. Sanjeev Kumar, Adv. Ms. Sarla, Chandra, Adv. Mr. Mukesh K. Giri, Adv. Mr. V.A. Mohta, Sr. Adv. Mr. J.T. Gilda, Adv. Mr. Manish Pitale, Adv. Mr. Nilkanta Nayak, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties :- Mr. C.S. Ashri, Adv. Mr. Raj Kumar Mehta, Adv. Mr. Ajit Kr. Sinha, Adv. Mr. Harish Kumar Puri, Adv. Mr. Himinder Lal, Adv. Ms. Anil Katiyar, Adv. Mr. B.K. Prasad, Adv. Mr. J.K. Das, Adv. Mr. B. Parthasarthi, Adv. Mr. V.B. Joshi, Adv. Mr. P.V. Dinesh, Adv.
For the Appearing Parties in IA 1233 :- Mr. R.P. Bhatt, Sr. Adv. Mr. Mukesh Kumar, Adv. Mrs. Mahima C. Shroff, Adv. Mr. Chirag M. Shroff, Adv. Mr. J.K. Dass, Adv. Mr. Ajay Pal, Adv. Mr. Nikhil Nayyar, Adv. Mr. J.P. Dabral (Applicant in person) Mr. D.K. Garg, Adv. Mr. Amit Kumar, Adv. M/s. K.J. John & Co. M/s. Gagrat & Co. Mr. Vishwajit Singh, Adv. Mr. C.N. Sreekumar, Adv. Mr. C.L. Sahu, Adv. Ms. Bina Tamta, Adv. Mr. S.N. Bhat, Adv. Mr. Shashi Bhushan, Adv. Mr. Anil Kr. Sanghal, Adv. Ms. Ruby Singh Ahuja, Adv. Mr. Ramesh N. Keshwani, Adv. Mr. Navin R. Nath, Adv. Mr. Tara Chand Sharma, Adv. Mr. Avijit Bhattacharjee, Adv. Dr. Kailash Chand, Adv. Mr. T. Mahipal, Adv.
The judgment affirms that compliance with financial obligations (NPV) allows continued mining, quashes unjustified criminal proceedings against court-appointed monitors, and mandates that environmental compensation funds be used specifically for the restoration and beautification of the affected natural areas.
Headnote:(A) Forest Act - Operations of sawmills - Compliance with financial obligations in mining - Net Present Value (NPV) - If the due NPV in terms of court orders has been paid, mining operations may be carried on and no coercive steps shall be taken by the forest department. (Para 3)
(B) Criminal Procedure - Quashing of FIR - Proceedings initiated against members of a court-appointed monitoring committee for visiting forest areas and entertaining complaints against public servants - Such proceedings are not justified - FIR quashed. (Paras 11-12)
(C) Administrative Law - Departmental Proceedings - Officials indicted by an investigating agency for manhandling a citizen reporting illegalities - Minor punishments awarded in departmental proceedings deemed insufficient by the court - Production of orders in departmental proceedings directed for further examination. (Para 7)
(D) Environmental Law - Compensation for defacing rocks - Funds collected from companies for illegal advertisements on rocks - Directed to be utilized by constituting a society within the area of operation for beautification and restoration based on monitoring reports. (Para 14)
Facts of the case:
Multiple interlocutory applications were filed concerning various forest-related issues across different states. These included grievances regarding the cessation of mining operations despite payment of Net Present Value, the permission to reopen sawmills, criminal proceedings initiated against members of a court-appointed monitoring committee, inadequate departmental reactions to officials manhandling a citizen, and the utilization of compensation funds collected for the illegal defacing of rocks with advertisements.
Findings of Court:
The court directed that upon verification of NPV payments, mining operations should be allowed to continue. Permission was granted for 134 sawmills to restart in one state. An FIR against members of a court-appointed monitoring committee was quashed as unjustified. The court expressed dissatisfaction with the lenient penalties awarded to officials in departmental proceedings following an investigation into the manhandling of a citizen. Compensation for rock defacing is to be utilized via a newly formed society for beautification and restoration.
Issues: The main issues were whether mining operations should be allowed upon verification of NPV payment, whether criminal proceedings against a court-appointed monitoring committee were justified, whether departmental punishments for official misconduct were adequate, and how environmental compensation for rock defacing should be utilized.
Ratio Decidendi: Payment of mandated financial liabilities, such as NPV, entitles the operator to continue activities without coercive interference from the department. Criminal proceedings against a court-appointed monitoring body for performing its duties are unsustainable. Environmental compensation funds must be specifically funneled into the restoration and beautification of the affected natural site through a structured society.
Result: FIR quashed; permissions granted for certain sawmills and mining operations; departmental orders called for; society to be formed for environmental restoration.
Legal Category Hierarchy
- environmental law
- criminal law
- administrative law
Table of Contents
2. Dispute over compliance with NPV payment and permission to mine; allegations of illegal retaliation against informant and CEC. (Para 3 , 7 , 11 )
3. Court not satisfied with departmental proceedings; quashes FIR against CEC; deprecates defacing of rocks. (Para 7 , 12 , 14 )
4. Compliance with NPV payment entitles mining operations; bona fide actions of CEC not actionable; environmental damage requires compensation. (Para 3 , 12 , 14 )
5. Various IAs disposed of; 134 sawmills allowed to restart; FIR quashed; society formed for compensation; further reports directed. (Para 5 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 20 , 21 )
6. Can forest authorities prevent mining operations after petitioner deposits NPV as directed by court?
No, if NPV is paid and no arrears, petitioner is entitled to carry on mining operations, and no coercive steps shall be taken. (Para 3 )
7. Can sawmills with no pending cases under the Forest Act be reopened?
Yes, based on CEC report, permission granted to restart 134 such sawmills. (Para 5 )
8. Are departmental proceedings adequate when CBI report indicates guilt of officials?
Not necessarily; court may require production of orders to examine if further directions needed. (Para 7 )
9. Can a complaint or FIR against CEC members for performing their duties be sustained?
No, such proceedings are not justified and FIR is quashed. (Para 11 , 12 )
10. Is defacing of rocks by advertisements illegal and does it require compensation?
Yes, it is illegal; compensation directed and society formed to utilize the money for environmental restoration. (Para 14 )
ORDER :
I.A. 1798/2007
1. Taken on Board. To be listed after two weeks.
I.A. Nos. 826 In 566 with 955 in 566, 958,985, 1001-1001A, 1013-1014, 1016-1018, 1019, 1046, 1047, 1135-1136, 1137, 1164, 1180-1181, 1182-1183, 1196, 1208-1209, 1222-1223, 1224-1225, 1229, 1233 in 1135-1136, 1248-1249, 1253, 1301-1302, 1303-1304, 1312, 1313, 1314, 1318, 1319 in 1137, 1325, 1364, 1365-1366, 1370-1370A, 1371, 1384, 1385-1386, 1387, 1434, 1435-1437, 1438, 1441, 1475-1476, 1513, 1573, 1634, 1639 in 1135-1136 in IA 566, 1664, 1665, 1671, 1676 in IA 566, 1707, 1721 in 1597 in 566, 1779 in 1164 in 566, 1785- 1786 in I.A.No.1441, 2013 and 2074-2076 in 566
2. Adjourned to 25th October, 2007 for mentioning.
IA 2077-78 in IA 1441
3. It is submitted by the counsel that they have already deposited NPV as directed by this Court and there are no arrears to be paid and it is submitted that despite this fact the forest authorities are not permitting to carry on mining operations and proceedings have been initiated. CEC will verify whether the due NPV in terms of this Court's orders have been paid and if so, the petitioner would be at liberty to carry on mining operations and no coercive steps shall be taken by Forest department.
4. Notice in the IA to the respondents. Petitioner may serve notice on the standing counsel.
I.A. No. 208-209, 241-242, 245,268-269, 1704-1706 and I.A. No. 1710-1712, 2024-2026, 2027-2029, 2030-2032, 2033-20235, 2036-2038, 2039-2041, 2042-2044, 2045-2047, 2048-2050, 2051-2053, 2055-2056, 1692, 1950-51, 1989-90:
5. CEC has filed report regarding the sawmills in the State of Uttarakhand. There are 134 sawmills which as per the report could be opened for functioning and no case is pending against the owners of the sawmills under the Forest Act. The permission is granted to restart these 134 sawmills.
6. As regards the 52 plywood and vineer units (31 sawmills and 21 plywood and vineer) the State would file its response. The CEC may examine the objection of the State and would file fresh report. List after three weeks.
IA 1201
7. On the intervening night of 15/16th August, 1999 at Damoh in Madhya Pradesh some untoward incident happened. One Santosh Bharti was allegedly man-handled by officials of the forest department and also the police department. The said Santosh Bharti claimed to be doing his duty as responsible public citizen in reporting about some of the illegalities committed by the officials incharge of the forest. It is alleged that he was attacked as a retaliation of his conduct in brining matters to notice of this Court. CBI had conducted investigation pursuant to the order passed by this Court. In the CBI report it had indicted some of the officials of the forest department and police department and case also is registered and the same is pending before the Spl. Judicial Magistrate, CBI at Jabalpur. However, in the departmental proceedings initiated, some minor punishments to some of the officials was awarded and majority of them were let off in the departmental proceedings. Having regard to the CBI report, we are not satisfied with the results of departmental proceedings taken at the instance of the State. The counsel representing the State is directed to produce the order passed in departmental proceedings before this Court, to be examined further as to whether any further directions need to be given in this regard.
8. Post after five weeks.
IA 1500
9. Adjourned by two weeks
IA 1202 and 1206
10. Heard counsel appearing for the State of Karnataka at some length.
11. The members of the CEC had visited the forest area in connection with the Kudramukh mining operations and entertaining a complaint filed against public servants. The Deputy Conservator of Forests Kudremukh Wildlife Division initiated proceedings against the members of the CEC and a FIR was registered in FOC No.2/2004-05 on 31/8/2004 and the FIR was submitted to the Judicial Magistrate of Karkala in Karnataka State.
12. We do not think that the complainants would be justif
