It was passed hastily: Bombay HC sets aside MPCB's closure order against part of Rohit Pawar's firm

The closure order issued by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) against a portion of Baramati Agro Ltd., a company managed by MLA Rohit Pawar of the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), was overturned by the Bombay High Court on Thursday.

A division bench led by Justice Nitin Jamdar said the MPCB order was set aside for being disproportionate and noted that the order was passed in a hasty manner. The bench has directed the MPCB to hear and decide the matter afresh on the basis of the show-cause notice issued to the company initially.

On September 27, the MPCB issued a closure order notice mandating the closure of a portion of Baramati Agro Ltd within 72 hours. The business contested this notice in front of the high court. The bench had earlier this month instructed the MPCB not to operate the closure notice in an ad-interim order.

The firm in its plea filed through advocate Akshay Shinde alleged that the order has been passed owing to political influence and considering the present political situation to pressurise the director of the petitioner company, that is Rohit Pawar, who is also a member of the legislative assembly of Maharashtra. Rohit Pawar, who is the grand-nephew of Sharad Pawar, is the CEO of Baramati Agro Ltd. He represents the Karjat-Jamkhed assembly constituency in Ahmednagar district.

Baramati Agro works in the fields of animal and poultry feed manufacturing, sugar and ethanol manufacturing, co-generation of power, trading of agri-commodities, fruits and vegetables and dairy products. In September, the MPCB issued a show-cause notice to the petitioner company which was responded to and a personal hearing was also held.

However, the MPCB officials failed to take into consideration any explanation, clarification or evidence submitted by the petitioner company and issued an order on September 27 directing close-down of the manufacturing activities of the unit without 72 hours, the plea said.