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Environmental LawDelhi High Court

Pradeep Kumar Gupta vs. Delhi Development Authority

Letters Patent Appeal · CNR No. DLHC010458692026Decided 1 Oct 2026New Delhi Bench
LPA 778/2026CNR: DLHC010458692026
Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya · Justice Tejas Karia

Background

The appellant runs CNG-powered school transport buses. During renovation work at a school campus from July to November 2025, the buses were parked under a flyover near Mayur Vihar Metro on the Yamuna floodplain. The Delhi Development Authority issued 22 challans between 07.07.2025 and 25.10.2025, each imposing a penalty of Rs 50,000 per bus (Rs 11 lakh in total), relying on the NGT's 2015 judgment in Manoj Mishra v. Union of India. The Single Judge dismissed the appellant's writ petition, and a review order removed one sentence about photographs showing garbage dumping, leaving the rest of the findings unchanged.

Decision Breakdown

The Division Bench dismissed the appeal. It held that unauthorised parking itself is a misuse of the regulated floodplain, regardless of whether any dumping occurred. The Rs 5,000 compensation under the NGT's para 94(vi)(d) relates to throwing pooja or other material into the river, not to parking, so it did not apply. The lack of parking space due to renovation did not justify parking in a prohibited, environmentally sensitive area. The appellant had been given a personal hearing on its representation before the rejection order, so the no-hearing complaint also failed.

Lesson Learnt

Parking in environmentally protected areas can attract penalties even without any dumping, and inconvenience caused by construction work is not a defence. Authorities must give a fair hearing on objections, and the penalty provision applied must match the conduct alleged.

Pradeep Kumar Gupta vs. Delhi Development Authority – Legal Case Shots | LegalAware