2024:BHC-OS:2949-DB IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO.1124 OF 2023 ALONG WITH INTERIM APPLICATION (LODGING) NO.8935 OF 2023 Hikal Ltd., ] Having registered office at Nariman Point, ] Mumbai and Factory at MIDC Taloja, ] Tal. Panvel, Dist. Raigad, Maharashtra ]

..Petitioner/Applicant Versus

1. Union of India, ]

Through Ministry of Environment, Forests & ] Climate Change, New Delhi. ]

2. Gujarat State Pollution Board, ]

Gandhinagar, Gujarat. ]

3. Central Pollution Control Board, ]

Shahdara, Delhi. ]

4. Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation, ]

Gandhinagar, Gujarat. ]

5. Collector & District Magistrate, ]

Surat, Gujarat. ]

6. Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, ]

Sion, Mumbai. ]

7. Brackish Water Research Centre, ]

Surat, Gujarat. ] .. Respondents ALONG WITH INTERIM APPLICATION (LODGING) NO.30428 OF 2023 Gujarat State Pollution Board, ] .. Applicant /

Gandhinagar, Gujarat. ] Org. Resp. No.2 Mr. Janak Dwarkadas, Senior Advocate, with Mr. Akshay Patil and Mr. Jarin Doshi, i/by Malvi Ranchoddas & Co., for the Petitioner.

Mr. A.S. Khandeparkar, Senior Advocate, with Mr. Niranjan Shimpi, for Respondent No.1-UOI.

Ms. Manisha Lavkumar, Senior Advocate, with Ms. Smruti Tripathy and Ms. Sheetal Shah, i/by Mehta Girdharlal, for Respondent No.2-GSPB.

1/31 Mr. C.M. Lokesh, with Ms. Deepa P., for Respondent No.3-CPCB.

Mr. Sagar Deb, with Mr. Jagdish Rajgor, for Respondent No.4-GIDC.

Mr. Jitendra Jagtap, with Mr. Umesh Iyer and Mr. Devendra Avhad, for Respondent No.6-MPCB.

Mr. Mihir Desai, Senior Advocate, with Ms. Lara Jesani, for Respondent No.7-Research Centre.

CORAM : A.S. CHANDURKAR & JITENDRA JAIN, JJ The date on which arguments were heard : 30TH JANUARY, 2024.

The date on which Judgment is pronounced : 22nd FEBRUARY, 2024.

JUDGMENT : [ Per A.S. Chandurkar, J. ]

1. The challenge raised in this writ petition, filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, is to the order dated 18th January 2022 passed by the Principal Bench of the National Green Tribunal, New Delhi taking suo motu cognizance of a newspaper report dated 7th January 2022 published in daily “The Indian Express” reporting the death of six persons and rendering about twenty persons to be sick in view of a gas leak at the industrial area in Surat. The petitioner has also challenged the order dated 23rd September 2022 passed by the Principal Bench, National Green Tribunal, New Delhi, wherein the report of the Joint Committee that was constituted pursuant to the earlier order dated 18th January 2022 came to be considered and various directions came to be issued. During pendency of the writ petition, another order dated 24th March 2023 passed by the Principal Bench, National Green Tribunal, New Delhi issuing further

2/31 directions in the matter of compensating victims of the said gas leak is also under challenge by amending the writ petition. The petitioner further seeks a declaration that the Principal Bench, National Green Tribunal, New Delhi lacks territorial jurisdiction to hear Original Application No.5 of 2022 as well as Miscellaneous Application No.46 of 2022 since it is only the Western Zone of the said Tribunal that has territorial jurisdiction to consider the proceedings.

2. By an interim order dated 24th March 2023, the parties to the writ petition were directed not to act upon the order passed by the Principal Bench, National Green Tribunal, New Delhi accepting the reports dated 31st May 2022 and 4th June 2022 for a period of one week. The said interim order was continued by the orders dated 30th March 2023, 13th April 2023, 25th April 2023, 14th June 2023 and 7th July 2023. Though the writ petition was to be considered on 21st July 2023, it was placed before the Court only on 6th December 2023 for considering Interim Application (Lodging) No.30428 of 2023 moved by the second respondent-Gujarat State Pollution Board for vacating the interim order dated 24th March 2023. The Court observed that from the record it could be se