Supreme Court Stays NGT Order on Uttarakhand Officials

The Supreme Court has stayed a National Green Tribunal order requiring appearances from officials in an encroachment case in Uttarakhand. The decision was made by Justices K V Viswanathan and N Kotiswar Singh after hearing legal representatives, granting temporary relief to state officials. Uttarakhand must file a relief application with the NGT within two weeks.

In a notable legal intervention, the Supreme Court stayed a National Green Tribunal directive that demanded personal appearances from key Uttarakhand officials in an ongoing encroachment case.

Presided over by Justices K V Viswanathan and N Kotiswar Singh, the bench addressed submissions from Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and senior advocate A N S Nadkarni, ultimately providing relief to the state government.

The court instructed the Uttarakhand government to submit an application to the NGT, Delhi for relief within a two-week period, underscoring the need for compliance with environmental laws concerning public land and river bodies.