IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Reserved on: 10.02.2026 Date of Decision :12.02.2026 Rajiv Bajaj ......Petitioner Versus Punjab Pollution Control Board ...... Respondent CORAM: HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE SURYA PARTAP SINGH Present : Mr. G.S.Bhatia, Advocate and Mr. K.S. Rupal, Advocate for the petitioner.

Mr. Amanpreet Singh, Advocate for the respondent.

SURYA PARTAP SINGH , J . (Oral) :

By virtue of this petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C. the extraordinary jurisdiction of this Court has been invoked for quashing of complaint No.CMA-752/13 dated 05.08.2013, filed by the respondent, and also the summoning order dated 09.06.2017 passed in the above mentioned complaint. The above mentioned complaint has been filed by the respondent against the petitioner and his co-accused for the commission of offence punishable under Section 19 of the Environment (Protection) Act 1986. It has been alleged that the petitioner and his co-accused had violated the notification dated 14.09.2006.

2. Briefly stating that the facts emerging from record are that the above mentioned complaint has been fled by the respondent alleging that in exercise of the powers conferred by sub section (1) and clause (v) of sub section (2) of section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, read with clause (d) of sub rule (3) of Rule 5 of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986, the Union Ministry of Environment & Forests had issued Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2006 vide Notification no. S.O. 1533 (E) dated 14/9/2006 in supersession of Notification no. S.O. 60 (E) dated 27.1.1994. Vide above mentioned notice, it has been provided that new projects or activities or the expansion or modernization of existing projects or activities listed in the Schedule to the said notification shall be undertaken in any part of India only after the prior environmental clearance from the Central Government, or as the case may be by the State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority, duly constituted by the Central Government under sub section (3) of section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

3. According to complainant the ‘Continental Group of Institutes of CIIS Educational Services Society’, i.e. the accused no. 1, is an educational Institute, established in the year 2005, located and situated in Village Jalvehra, P.O Nabipur, G.T. Road, District Fatehgarh Sahib. As per complainant, the accused no. 1 is an industry within the meaning of section 16 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and an educational institution, whereas the accused no. 2, i.e. Baljeet Singh Sandhu, is the President of accused No. 1, the accused no. 3, namely Sh. Devinder Sandhu, is the Treasurer, the accused no. 4, Gurpreet Sandhu, is the General Secretary, and the accused no. 5 and 6, Sh. Rajiv Bajaj and Gen. K.S. Mann, are the members of accused no. 1. As per complainant they all are incharge of and responsible for the conduct and day to day business/functioning of accused No.1. According to complainant, in view of their respective positions, they all are liable to be proceeded against in accordance with Law for the offences committed by the accused no.1, i.e. ‘M/s Continental Group of Institutes of CIIS Educational Services Society’. The Photocopy of Memorandum of Association of Accused No.1 has been enclosed as Annexure-A.

4. The complainant has further alleged that the effluent sample was collected by the officers of the Board from the outlet of STP [as prescribed under Section 21 of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution), Act, 1974] and that the analysis of aforesaid effluent sample revealed the concentration of pollutants as under:

In view of above mentioned report it was found that the BOD of the effluent was beyond the limits prescribed by the Board.

5. As per complainant during visit it was also observed that the institute was raising further construction for the hostel block and workshop, without obtaining environmental clearance under EIA notific