B. M. Lal, J. - (1.) PETITIONER No. 1, M/s. Lipton India Ltd. is a company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act, 1956, having its manufacturing Unit of Vanaspati at G.T. Road, Ghaziabad and petitioner No. 2 was the Factory Engineer of the Unit. This Unit in its process of manufacturing Vanaspati discharges certain trade effluents.
(2.) UNDER the provisions of Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 (hereinafter referred to as the Act), no person can discharge trade effluents without the previous consent of the State Board, (constituted under the Act) (hereinafter referred to as the Board), therefore, the petitioner company applied for the consent of the Board for discharging trade effluents until such time that a proper plant for treatment of the trade effluents was made in order to satisfy the provisions of the Act. According to the petitioners, aforesaid application was made in the year 1983 and conditional consent was granted by the Board on 16.12.83. Thereafter, petitioners applied from time to time to extend the consent until such time that its plant which was under construction was completed. The plant was completed in the year 1988. However, the petitioner has placed on record the consent accorded by the Board on 6.10.88 and has not brought on record any document to substantiate that any consent was accorded by the Board prior to 6.10.88. Further, according to petitioners, by an order dated 13.5.88 Board refused to accord consent to the petitioners against which they preferred an appeal under Section 28 of the Act inter alia on the ground among others that the trade effluent was not being discharged in river Hindon rather it was being discharged in Dasna drain, Ghaziabad. It is alleged that the said appeal is still pending.
(3.) THE aforesaid appeal was filed by the petitioners on 9.6.88 and prior to that, i.e. on 26.5.88, the respondent No. 2 Board filed a complaint case through its Assistant Environmental Engineer, (being Case No. 717 of 1988) in the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ghaziabad, under Section 200 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for taking suitable action under Section 44 of the Act against petitioner company and its officers viz. Sri Alok Gupta, Factory Engineer, Sri Bipin Ratilala Shah, Chairman, Dr. Ranjan Banerjee, Director, Sri C. J. Mahimkar, Director, Sri P. J. M. Panikar. Director. Sri J. G. H. Thwaites, Director, Sri P. L. Brazier, Director and Sri O. P. Agarwal, Secretary, alleging therein that they have committed offence within the meaning of the provisions of Section 44 of the Act. The Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ghaziabad, having taken cognizance of the offence alleged under Section 44 of the Act, by his order dated 27.5.88 issued process against all the accused persons.;