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MC Mehta V Union of India

M.C. Mehta v. Union of India was a landmark environmental law case in India. M.C. Mehta, a social activist lawyer, filed a public interest litigation seeking closure of Shriram Industries, which was located in a densely populated area of Delhi and manufacturing hazardous substances. In December 1985, there were two leaks of oleum gas from Shriram Industries that caused deaths and health impacts. The case established the polluter pays principle and precautionary principle in Indian environmental law. It also set guidelines for handling hazardous industries in populated areas.

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372 views

MC Mehta V Union of India

M.C. Mehta v. Union of India was a landmark environmental law case in India. M.C. Mehta, a social activist lawyer, filed a public interest litigation seeking closure of Shriram Industries, which was located in a densely populated area of Delhi and manufacturing hazardous substances. In December 1985, there were two leaks of oleum gas from Shriram Industries that caused deaths and health impacts. The case established the polluter pays principle and precautionary principle in Indian environmental law. It also set guidelines for handling hazardous industries in populated areas.

Uploaded by

MiHiKa BhAtNaGaR
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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M.C. Mehta V.

Union of India
The environmental law being a civil tort presents us with a lot of legislations and statutory
provisions to seek remedy for the harm caused to the environment. Till the seventies, nothing
much was done to improve the degrading environmental in the country. After certain industrial
disasters, the courts in India have produced landmark judgments, introducing certain new
reforms. Statutory laws concerning the environment have come into force today. The widespread
destruction caused due to the Bhopal gas leak gave way to the enforcement of The Environment
Protection Act, 1986. A landmark judgment that changed the scope of Environment Law in India
was that of MC Mehta v. Union of India, also referred to as the Oleum Gas Leak case.1

A writ petition was filed by M.C Mehta, a social activist lawyer, who sought closure for Shriram
Industries as it was engaged in manufacturing of hazardous substances and was located in a
densely populated area of Kirti Nagar, Delhi NCR.2 While the petition was pending, on 4 and 6
December 1985, there was leakage of oleum gas from one of its units which caused the death of
an advocate and affected the health of several others. The incident took place on December 4,
1985.3 The leakage was caused by a series of mechanical and human errors. This leakage
resulted from the bursting of the tank containing oleum gas as a result of the collapse of the
structure on which it was mounted and it created a scare amongst the people residing in that area.
Hardly had the people got out of the shock of this disaster when, within two days, another
leakage, though this time a minor one took place as a result of escape of oleum gas from the
joints of a pipe.4 Just after one year from the Bhopal gas disaster a large number of persons were
affected. This incident also reminded of the Bhopal gas holocaust.5 Post-midnight on December
3, 1984, poisonous gas that leaked from the factory of Union Carbide in Madhya Pradesh capital
Bhopal killed thousands of people directly. The incident is now known as the Bhopal disaster or
Bhopal gas tragedy. As per official records, the Bhopal gas tragedy killed 3,787 people.6

Shriram Foods and Fertilizer Industries had several units engaged in the manufacture of caustic
soda, chlorine, hydrochloric acid, stable bleaching powder, super phosphate, vanaspati, soap,
sulphuric acid, alum anhydrous sodium sulphate, high test hypochlorite and active earth. All
units were set up in a single complex situated in approximately 76 acres and they are surrounded

1
Shrishti Vasta, the landmark case of MC Mehta v. Union of India, https://blog.ipleaders.in/mc-mehta-clean-
environement/ , June 12, 2018
2
Roopali Lamba , Case Analysis MC Mehta v. union of India( Shriram industries),
https://www.latestlaws.com/articles/case-analysis-m-c-mehta-v-union-of-india-shriram-industries-case-by-
roopali-lamba/, August 29,2019
3
Supra Note
4
Surajit Bahuri, MC Mehta v. Union of India- Article 12 of the Indian constitution,
http://www.legalserviceindia.com/article/l265-M.C.-Mehta-v.-Union-of-India.html, July 6, 2018
5
Supra Note
6
Prabhash K Dutta, Bhopal Gas Tragedy: What happened on this day 33 years ago,
https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/bhopal-gas-tragedy-what-had-happened-this-day-33-years-ago-that-killed-
thousands-1099247-2017-12-03, December 3,2019
by thickly populated colonies.7 M.C Mehta filed a PIL under Articles 21 and 32 of the
Constitution and sought closure and relocation of the Shriram Caustic Chlorine and Sulphuric
acid Plant. The case was first referred to a three-judge bench which allowed the power plant and
the other concerned plants to begin its operations subject to certain regulations laid down by the
court. But after considering the issues to be of utmost importance to the legal and environmental
scenario of the country, the bench was further referred by five judges. Thus the matter was
eventually looked upon by a bench of five judges.8 On 6th December, 1985 by the District
Magistrate, Delhi under Section 133(1) of Crpc, directed Shriram that within two days Shriram
should cease carrying on the occupation of manufacturing and processing hazardous and lethal
chemicals and gases including chlorine, oleum, super-chlorine, phosphate, etc. at their
establishment in Delhi and within 7 days to remove such chemicals and gases from Delhi.

7
Supra Note
8
P Bhagwati, MC Mehta and ans v. Union of India on 20th December,2018,
https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1486949/,

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