The Punjab and Haryana High Court has provided relief to Trident Limited, MP Rajinder Gupta’s company, asking PPCB to initiate coercive steps only after allowing 30 days to the company to correct minor deficiencies.
According to a bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sanjiv Berry, the company’s claim that the April 30 raid by Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) was linked to political vendetta “appears reasonably palpable”. Rajinder Gupta, Rajya Sabha MP and Chairman Emeritus of the company, is one of seven MPs who recently resigned from AAP to join the BJP.
In its order passed on Friday, the court noted that the PPCB had not shown any urgent situation where any stream, land, or environment was being polluted by harmful effluents. Trident Limited had approached the High Court after PPCB carried out a raid at its premises on April 30.
While disposing of the petition, the bench also allowed the company to approach the National Green Tribunal if any coercive action is taken by the PPCB.
In its plea, the company said it was affected by what it called arbitrary, coercive and mala fide action by the authorities. It termed the April 30 raid as “unprecedented” and said it was conducted without prior notice or any stated violation.
It also said the action violated the principles of natural justice as no opportunity was given before the inspection. During the hearing, counsel for the petitioner Munisha Gandhi, Viraj Gandhi and Adarsh K Dubey argued that the raid was driven by political vendetta and not environmental concerns, which made the action invalid.
Senior advocate D S Patwalia, appearing for PPCB, referred to Rule 32(6) of the Punjab Water Rules. He argued that prior hearing can be waived when there is a risk of serious environmental damage.
After hearing both sides, the court said it was not going into the merits of the dispute. "However, an issue which deserves consideration is that of the timing of the raid conducted on April 30 by a team of officers of respondent No.2/Board (PPCB), which is in close proximity to the switching of political allegiance by Rajinder Gupta from Aam Aadmi Party to Bhartiya Janta Party along with six other members of Rajya Sabha on April 24," according to the order.
"...the apprehension in the mind of the petitioner company that the raid conducted by respondent No.2/Board on April 30 stems from political vendetta, appears reasonably palpable," the order read.
"As such, this court is of the considered view that since respondent No.2/Board has failed to show any emergent situation where any stream, well, land or environment is being polluted by poisonous effluents, it would be appropriate to allow respondent No.2/Board to take coercive steps only after affording reasonable opportunity of 30 days to the petitioner Company for rectifying any minor deficiencies," it read.
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