The Supreme Court’s strikedown of the two executive instruments of the Union environment ministry for ex post facto environmental clearances is significant
The Supreme Court’s strikedown of the two executive instruments of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MOEFCC) for ex post facto environmental clearances (ECs) is significant. At the heart of the case was a simple but critical question—can industries be allowed to start operations first and seek environmental clearance later? The simple answer is no. The law requires that environmental risks be assessed before a project breaks ground. Yet, MOEFCC attempted to circumvent this principle.
The judgement has questioned the role of MOEFCC, a ministry tasked with safeguarding the nation’s environment, for repeatedly enabling violators instead of holding them accountable and stopping violations. As the court unequivocally stated, “The Central Government shall not come out with a new version of the 2017 notification which provides for the grant of ex post facto EC in any manner.” Thus, the judgement is significant not merely for what it quashes, but for what it restores—the foundational legal principle that prevention must precede remediation.
The grant of EC by the government is not a bureaucratic formality but a core preventive measure under the…
This column was originally published as part of the article ‘Loophole plugged’ in the June 16-30, 2025 print edition of Down To Earth
Read the complete article on this link of Down To Earth magazine.