January 29, 2018:

NGT Bar Association has moved the apex court challenging the validity of the new Rules.

Change in rules enabling even a single member bench of National Green Tribunal (NGT) to discharge the judicial function has come under scanner of Supreme Court.

NGT Bar Association has moved the Supreme Court challenging validity of National Green Tribunal (Practices and Procedures) Amendment Rules, 2017 that allows even a single member bench to perform judicial function.

Earlier, rules mandated that NGT Benches must have two members to hear and decide cases, the bar body said.

Apex Court Bench comprising CJI Dipak Misra and Justice A M Khanwilkar and Justice D Y Chandrachud has agreed to hear on January 29 plea of the bar body challenging the amended rules.

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for NGT Bar Association, alleged that the change in rules was unconstitutional and deserved to be struck down.

Functioning of the Green Panel, which is being headed by Acting Chairperson Justice U D Salvi after Justice Swatanter Kumar demitted office on December 19, last year, has been hampered at its head and zonal benches due to nonappointment to the posts which have fallen vacant in recent past.

Pendency of pleas, which challenge the constitutional validity of Finance Act 2017 and rules under it to regulate issue like appointment and tenure of members of tribunals, in the top court has not helped the cause of addressing the shortage of judicial and non-judicial members in NGT either.

Earlier, Apex Court had asked Centre and the other stakeholders to sit together and formulate an "interim arrangement" to deal with appointments to be made in various tribunals including the NGT.

Court had said that though it would deal with constitutional validity of Finance Act and rules at a later stage, the issue of vacancies in tribunals have to be addressed on an urgent basis as the panels have to be "manned".

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