Madhya Pradesh HC allows objections to victims’ claims.
Last Updated on December 28, 2024 by NewsDesk SLC
The Jabalpur bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court allowed the factory owners to raise objections regarding the genuineness of the claimants in relation to their injuries and the amounts to be paid for the destruction of the houses. The court said that if the petitioner raises such objections, the National Green Tribunal Bhopal will consider them in accordance with law. The administration can pay compensation in cases of death as per NGT guidelines.
A bench of Justice Sanjeev Sachdev and Justice Vinay Saraf dismissed the suit saying the petitioner can raise objections regarding classification, genuineness of plaintiffs/victims and amount to be paid for loss of property, destruction of houses. and displacement.
The petitioners, brothers operating four firecracker factories under licenses issued under the Explosives Rules, 2008, were involved in a series of blasts at their factory on February 6, which caused significant damage and caused several deaths. An FIR was lodged against the petitioners alleging mismanagement and lack of security measures. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) passed an interim order ordering the payment of interim compensation to the victims, which resulted in over 60 houses being damaged and over 100 houses being forced to vacate. The petitioners were ordered to deposit the amount with the District Environmental Compensation Fund, but Collector Harda assessed the liabilities to the factory owners and seized their property worth R9 million.
Counsel for the petitioners argued that the action of the NGT violates the principles of natural justice and that the petition is maintainable. They argued that the NGT granted the ex-parte interim relief in an arbitrary and illegal manner and that the order was passed on the basis of media reports. The petitioners prayed for an opportunity to submit objections to the NGT regarding cases of injury, damage to houses and displacement of individuals. They also argued that the petitioners have challenged the order of the NGT which is appealable under Sections 14 and 22 of the NGT Act.
Advocate General for the petitioner submitted that the cases have been verified by the Collector and all the documents are available to the lawyer. However, the Supreme Court found that the explosion took place on February 6 and the NGT issued an order on that date. The court found that at the time of the order no damages had been established or the nature of the injuries had been determined.
The court also rejected the challenge regarding the maintainability of the petition, holding that the ex-parte order was passed without an opportunity of being heard and violated the principles of natural justice. The court also allowed the petitioner to propose a higher amount for the auction of the property and the preliminary measure of 04/23/2024 was modified to the extent related to death cases. The NGT could consider payment of the amount in cases of injury and loss of property taking into account the objections of the petitioner.
Case Name: Somesh Agrawal And Others v/s The State Of Madhya Pradesh And Others, Writ Petition No. 5160 of 2024
