The Madhya Pradesh High Court has dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), seeking direction to quash the sanction order of November 5, 2019, granted by the Town and Country Planning department, for construction of “Shobhapur Greens” project.
The PIL has been filed by one R.K. Singh.
Various submissions have been made with regard to the violations being made by the private respondents, alleging that acts being committed by them were illegal and against the law.
In the interregnum, an application is filed by the petitioner to take on record certain documents. One of the documents is the order dated September 7, 2020, passed by the Principal Bench of National Green Tribunal.
The subject matter was the same that was being sought to be urged herein. The Tribunal vide its order dated September 7, 2020 has dismissed the petition with cost of Rs 25,000. It was submitted that aggrieved by the same, an SLP was filed before the Supreme Court, which was dismissed.
On being questioned, the same was not disputed by the petitioner that he himself had produced the document. However, what is being contended by the petitioner is that certain grounds have not been taken before the Tribunal and the findings recorded by the Tribunal are erroneous.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Ravi Malimath and Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav observed that once the subject matter has already been seized of by the National Green Tribunal, any subsequent petition arising out of the very same subject matter should necessarily be considered by the very same authority.
The High Court held that even assuming that the submissions of the petitioner were to be accepted that the grounds are different and the facts are at variation, it is not disputed by him that the subject matter involved pertaining to the construction of the “Shobhapur Greens” is the same. Therefore, rightfully the petitioner should have moved the National Green Tribunal for whatever relief he wants.
It was observed by the Court that it could be seen that knowing this position, the petitioner has deliberately filed this Public Interest Litigation by misusing its scope. Secondly, the petitioner before the National Green Tribunal was none other than the brother of the petitioner. He was very well aware of these proceedings.
“The petitioner knowing the position, in our considered view, was not justified in filing this petition.
“Under these circumstances, we do not find any ground to entertain this petition. Hence, for all the aforesaid reasons, the writ petition being devoid of merit is dismissed. The petitioner is always at liberty to pursue such remedy as available in law,” the order read.