Misc Application in disposed of cases No. 30/2025 in Original Application No. 988/2024 of Jambaiah K So Thimmappa K vs

NGT5 Mar 2025Misc Application in disposed of cases No. 30/2025 in Original Application No. 988/2024

Case brief

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What is this about?

The NGT Bench held that proceedings in an Original Application must be kept in abeyance until the High Court decides the jurisdictional challenge pending as a Writ Petition. Consequently, the Misc. Application was disposed of without passing further orders on the proposed transfer.

What the court decided

AI extract

Misc Application in disposed of cases No. 30/2025 in… — Writ and Judicial Review | NGT (2025)

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Item No. 03

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Count No.1

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BEFORE THE NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL PRINCIPAL BENCH, NEW DELHI

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M.A. No. 30/2025 In

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Original Application No. 988/2024

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Jambaiah K So Thimmappa K Applicant

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Versus

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State of Karnataka & Ors.

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Respondent(s)

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Date of hearing: 05.03.2025

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CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE PRAKASH SHRIVASTAVA, CHAIRPERSON HON’BLE DR. A. SENTHIL VEL, EXPERT MEMBER

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Applicant: Mr. Pinaki Misra, Senior Advocate with Mr. Aakash Bajaj, Ms. Prerona Banerjee & Ms. Sania Abbasi, Advs. for the Applicant in M.A. No. 30/2025

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ORDER

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By this Misc. Application, applicant has prayed for a direction against transfer of the Original Application (OA) 988/2024 and has raised an issue of continuance of proceedings in the OA in spite of pendency of Writ Petition before the High Court.

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Plea of the applicant is that Tribunal by order dated 21.10.2024 had entertained the letter petition and had registered the OA 988/2024 in suo-moto exercise of power and had formed the joint committee.

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Further plea of the applicant is that this order dated 21.10.2024 is the subject matter of challenge before High Court of Delhi in Writ Petition (C)No. 15771/2024 wherein Learned Single Judge of the High Court by order dated 13.11.2024 taking note of the jurisdictional issue had stayed the order dated 21.10.2024 till the next date of hearing.

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He further submits that Writ Petition is pending before High Court of Delhi and interim order is continued yet the Tribunal by order dated 17.12.2024 passed in OA 988/2024 had proposed the transferred of the OA 988/2024 to the Southern Zonal Bench, Chennai.

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Tribunal on 17.12.2024 had passed the following order in the OA:-

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“ 6 . In view of both the objections raised by the Project Proponent (but without expressing any opinion or acknowledging correctness thereof) and also the fact that substantial environmental questions of water and air pollution raised in the present letter petition need to be addressed within appropriate time frame in view of the very nature thereof as delay in remediating water and air pollution may result in irreversible environmental damage, we consider it appropriate and are inclined to recall/modify order dated 21.10.2024 and transfer the application to Southern Zone Bench of this Tribunal at Chennai, with requisite approval from Hon'ble Chairperson of this Tribunal, for passing appropriate orders after taking cognizance and giving opportunity of being heard to the Project Proponent. We do not see any objection to passing of any such order as the petitioner has not challenged the competence of appropriate Bench of this Tribunal to take cognizance suo motu and further proceedings before this Tribunal have also not been stayed by Hon'ble Delhi High Court and such order, instead of being in conflict with the order passed by Hon'ble High Court of Delhi, will facilitate not only expeditious disposal of the petition filed by the Project Proponent before Hon'ble High Court of Delhi but will also assist the Southern Zone Bench of this Tribunal in appropriate resolution/adjudication of the substantial environmental questions of water and air pollution raised in the letter petition

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7. However, before passing of any such order as aforesaid we give an opportunity to the Project Proponent to file his response as to whether the Project Proponent has any objection with respect to such recall/modification of order dated 21.10.2024 and transfer of the original application to Southern Zone Bench of this Tribunal at Chennai, with requisite approval from Hon'ble Chairperson of this Tribunal, for passing of appropriate orders after taking cognizance and after hearing the applicant and the Project Proponent and for this purpose the Project Proponent may seek clarification from Hon'ble High Court of Delhi if so considered necessary/desired by it. ”

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It appears that on basis of the above-said order, OA has been transferred to the Southern Zonal Bench and has been re-numbered as

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OA No. 28/2025. It has been pointed out that said OA was listed before Southern Zonal Bench on 28.02.2025 and taking note of the order of Delhi High Court it has been adjourned to 23.06.2025.

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Learned Senior Counsel appearing for the applicant submits that by order dated 17.12.2024 only transfer to the Southern Zonal Bench was proposed after giving an opportunity of hearing to the applicant but in fact no order of transfer was passed, therefore, Registry by misreading the said order ought not to have transferred the OA to the Southern Zonal Bench.

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Learned Senior Counsel has relied upon the judgment of Hon’ble Supreme Court in the matter of State of Himachal Pradesh and Others vs. Yogendera Mohan Sengupta and Another dated 11.01.2024 passed in Civil Appeal Nos. 5348-5349/2019 (2024 SCC Online SC 36) and has submitted that Tribunal ought not to have proceeded in the OA when the Writ Petition was pending before Delhi High Court. He has relied upon the paragraph 125 and 128 of the above order wherein Hon’ble Supreme Court has held that:

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“ 125. In view of the settled legal position, we are of the view that the continuation of the proceedings by the NGT during the pendency of the writ petitions before the High Court was not in conformity with the principles of judicial propriety. Needless to state that the High Court of Himachal Pradesh, insofar as its territorial jurisdiction is concerned, has supervisory jurisdiction over the NGT. Despite pendency of the proceedings before the High Court including the one challenging the interim order dated 12th May 2022 passed by NGT, the NGT went ahead with the passing of the second order impugned herein.

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128. In any case, the second. order-of-NGT-is-passed-basically on the basis of the first order of NGT. Since we have held the first order of NGT itself to be not tenable in law, the second-order of NGT which is solely based on the first order of NGT, is liable to be set aside, on the short ground. This, apart from the fact that as discussed hereinabove, on the ground of judicial propriety, the NGT ought not to have continued with the proceedings after the High Court-wasin-seisin of the matter and specifically when it was informed about the same.

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G. Balancing the need for Development and Protection of the Environment.”

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Having regard to the above factual and legal position, we are of the view that till the issue is decided by High Court of Delhi in Writ Petition 15771/2024 further proceedings in this OA should be kept in abeyance.

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At this stage, plea of the learned Sr. Counsel for the applicant is that jurisdictional issue relating to the place of hearing of the OA will be finally governed by the order passed by Delhi High Court in the pending Writ Petition. Learned Senior Counsel for the applicant submits that no further orders in this MA is required.

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MA is accordingly disposed of. Let a copy of this order be forwarded to Southern Zonal Bench Chennai.

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Prakash Shrivastava, CP

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Dr. A. Senthil Vel, EM

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March 05, 2025 M.A. No. 30/2025 In Original Application No. 988/2024 JG..

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Misc Application in disposed of cases No. 30/2025 in Original Application No. 988/2024 of Jambaiah K So Thimmappa K vs

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Misc Application in disposed of cases No. 30/2025 in Original Application No. 988/2024 of Jambaiah K So Thimmappa K vs

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