The Meghalaya High Court has directed the owners of coke plants who have challenged its order in the Supreme Court to file an application to be impleaded in the present PIL on coal mining and also to justify their grounds for changing of the order passed by the High Court on May 24.
It may be noted that the Supreme Court on June 27 has directed the coke plant owners to apply to be impleaded in the present proceedings in the Meghalaya High Court.
The apex court also directed the High Court to hear the coke plant owners for modification of the interim order of May 24 passed by the High Court. The Supreme Court also stayed the order of the High Court for dismantling the coke plants.
The coke plant owners moved the Supreme Court against an order of May 24 by which the High Court had accepted the findings contained in the preliminary report dated May 23 filed by Justice B P Katakey (Retd).
Justice Katakey had earlier been requested by an order of the High Court on April 19 to ascertain if the State government had complied with the directions issued by the Supreme Court and by the National Green Tribunal in respect of establishing and running of coke plants under the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.
Today the High Court said that the point of view of the coke plant owners before the Supreme Court needs to be looked into and, as such, they are permitted a week to file the relevant application to be impleaded in the present proceedings and also to give all grounds for modification of the High Court order passed on May 24 and possible challenges to the preliminary recommendations of Justice Katakey as contained in the report of May 23.
The next hearing on the matter will be held on July 20.
