Enforcing a Tribunal Order, and Section 26

In one line

Ten crore for a person, twenty-five crore for a company, and three years' imprisonment for ignoring the Tribunal.

In exam wording: section 25 of the National Green Tribunal Act 2010 makes an award, order or decision of the Tribunal executable by it as a decree of a civil court, transmissible to a civil court for execution, and recoverable as arrears of land revenue; section 26 punishes failure to comply with imprisonment up to three years or a fine up to ten crore rupees or both, with a proviso raising the fine to twenty-five crore for a company; section 27 provides for offences by companies; and section 28 for a failure by a Government Department, for which the Head of the Department is deemed guilty.

Section 25: three ways to enforce

Sub-section (1). An award, order or decision shall be executable by the Tribunal as a decree of a civil court, and for that purpose the Tribunal shall have all the powers of a civil court.

Sub-section (2). Notwithstanding that, the Tribunal may transmit any order or award to a civil court having local jurisdiction, which shall execute it as if it were a decree made by that court.

Sub-section (3). Where the person responsible for the death, injury or damage fails to pay or deposit as directed within the period specified, the amount is recoverable as arrears of land revenue or of public demand, without prejudice to the filing of a complaint for prosecution under this Act or any other law.

Three routes and a saving, and each does different work.

Sub-section (1) lets the Tribunal enforce its own order, so a decree-holder need not begin fresh proceedings elsewhere.

Sub-section (2) lets it send the order to a local civil court, which matters because the Tribunal sits at a few benches and the judgment-debtor's property is where it is.

Sub-section (3) gives the revenue route, which is the quickest of the three: no execution petition, no objection proceedings, and the Collector's machinery for attachment and sale.

And the saving makes clear that recovery and prosecution are cumulative: recovering the money as land revenue does not preclude a complaint under section 26.

Section 26: the penalty for defiance

For a person.

Whoever fails to comply with any order or award or decision of the Tribunal shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine which may extend to ten crore rupees, or with both; and where the failure or contravention continues, with an additional fine which may extend to twenty-five thousand rupees for every day during which it continues after conviction for the first such failure.