On Monday, the Supreme Court asked the High Court of Andhra Pradesh to decide by the end of next week on 3 applications filed by LG Polymers seeking access to the Visakhapatnam plant, where a poisonous gas leak incident took place on May 7.
A bench headed by Justice UU Lalit also said that the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has the powers to take suo motu cognizance of incidents that have implications on the environment.
The Supreme Court was hearing a petition filed by LG Polymers, challenging the National Green Tribunal's order in its suo motu case constituting a monitoring committee to look into the Vizag gas leak tragedy case.
LG Polymers can also move the Andhra Pradesh HC for the release of the passports of their Directors currently deposited with authorities, the SC said.
The company, in its appeal, also sought directions to access the plant to ensure that it could respond to various committees that have been set up by different authorities concerned in the wake of May 7, 2020 incident, in which at least eleven people lost their lives.
Senior Advocate & Ex-Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for LG Polymers, said that the Collector had no reason to prevent 2 company personnel from entering the plant just because they were lawyers, even though the SC had earlier allowed the entry of 30 personnel into the plant.
The Top Court has also restrained the disbursal of the compensation amount of Rs 50 crore deposited by LG Polymers as directed by the National Green Tribunal, for a period of ten days.
ARGUEMENT
The Bench inquired if a nod from the authorities was sought for the removal of the hazardous gas from the plant to which Mukul Rohatgi, Learned Counsel of LG Polymers replied,
"My plant which is a highly specialized one has been sealed. This order of sealing without an expert opinion is wrong."
He further elaborated that despite the large number of committees formed under different statutes to oversee the case, the High Court is yet to take up the matter for hearing. He added that the action of the DM to prevent the entry of the two lawyers, as part of the personnel allowed entry into the plant, was improper.
He said:
"...the Collector had no reason to prevent the entry of two personnel just because they were lawyers, even though the Supreme Court had directed the entry of 30 personnel into the plant vide its last order."
Rohatgi clarified that the company was before the Supreme Court to challenge the order by which the plant was directed to be sealed, and the order directing passports of the company's Directors to be deposited. He termed the sealing of the plant as "unconstitutional".
The Green Tribunal had earlier directed Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary to identify & take appropriate actions against persons responsible for the failure of law in permitting the company to operate without statutory clearances.
The NGT had taken suo motu cognizance of the May 7 gas leak incident at LG Polymers chemical plant in Visakhapatnam, in which 11 people had lost their lives, & the damage was caused to the environment & habitat.
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