The National Green Tribunal (NGT) Bar Association has urgently raised an alarm before the Supreme Court of India about the potential non-functionality of three zonal benches of the NGT due to a shortage of members. This pressing issue was brought to the forefront on Monday as the Supreme Court had previously extended the tenure of certain NGT members, which is set to expire on September 8. Post-expiry, the functioning of these benches could be severely impacted, according to submissions by the NGT Bar Association.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, alongside Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, responded to the Bar Association’s plea for an urgent hearing by suggesting, “Then we may list the matter before September 8.” Initially, the case was scheduled for September 15.
The urgency stems from earlier Supreme Court orders aimed at maintaining the operational status of the NGT amidst vacancies in its judiciary. In February, the Court emphasized that the retirement of judicial members could negatively affect the tribunal’s operations across multiple locations. As an interim solution, the Court allowed three judicial members to continue in their roles until new appointments could be made or further orders issued.
On March 9, the Supreme Court extended the tenures of chairpersons and members of various tribunals, including those at the NGT, whose terms were due to end between March 9 and September 8, 2026, with the caveat of adhering to the applicable maximum age limits. This extension was a strategic measure to prevent tribunals from becoming inactive due to a lack of extended terms.
During the recent hearing, counsel for the NGT Bar Association highlighted, “Your Lordships will recall that Your Lordships have extended the tenures till September 8. Now, three benches of the NGT, including the Southern Bench and Western Zone Bench, will all have to stop functioning from September 8 because the NGT Act does not allow a single-member Bench. So it will completely cripple them.”
The counsel underscored that the new legislation concerning tribunals would not offer an immediate solution as the appointment process would be time-consuming. “But that cannot happen overnight. It will take some time for the appointments to happen. In the meantime, we cannot have one single Bench of the NGT functioning,” the counsel stressed.
In the absence of either an extension or new appointments, only the Principal Bench in Delhi could remain functional, placing a burden on it until new members are appointed. “So three zonal benches come to a complete standstill and all matters will have to be heard in Delhi by the Principal Bench. Presently there are two Benches in Delhi, one of which will stop functioning from September 8. There is one in Madras,” the counsel explained.
The counsel also mentioned Section 24(3) of the new Act, which includes a savings provision for ongoing appointment processes. Nevertheless, the specifics of the appointment process remain unclear, and fresh appointments could be delayed. Therefore, the counsel urged the Court to either hear the matter before September 8 or to extend the current arrangement until the hearing scheduled for September 15.
