Sanghar Zuber Ismail v. Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change
Background
The appellant challenged a National Green Tribunal (NGT) order that had refused to interfere with an environmental clearance granted to a company for expanding its refinery capacity (from 20 MMTPA to 46 MMTPA) at the petro-chemical complex in Vadinar, Gujarat. The main concern was that the expansion would adversely affect the marine environment, including mangroves and marine biology near the coast.
Decision Breakdown
The Supreme Court found that the NGT, while exercising its appellate power under the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010, had failed to independently examine the substantive environmental objections. Instead, the NGT had simply relied on the project proponent's statement that it would comply with clearance conditions and had set up an expert committee to monitor compliance. The Supreme Court held that an adjudicatory tribunal cannot delegate its core decision-making function to a committee, however expert; the NGT itself must examine the merits. It therefore allowed the appeal, set aside the NGT's order, and sent the matter back to the NGT for fresh adjudication on merits, keeping all rights and contentions of the parties open.
Lesson Learnt
Specialized tribunals like the NGT must personally examine and decide the substantive merits of a challenge brought before them: they cannot outsource that adjudicatory responsibility to an expert committee or simply accept a party's assurances of future compliance.