Supreme Court Rules Against Ex-Post Facto Environment Clearance

Introduction

On 16 May 2025, the Supreme Court in Vanashakti v Union of India 2025 SCC OnLine SC 1139 struck down the notification dated 14 March 2017 and Office Memorandum dated 7 July 2021 issued by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) holding that ex-post facto Environmental Clearances (ECs) violate the constitutional right to a pollution-free environment under Article 21. The Court barred the government from issuing any future notifications allowing such post facto clearances but clarified that ECs already granted under the quashed notifications would remain unaffected. The Supreme Court judgment was passed in a group of matters inter alia challenging the constitutional validity of the 2017 notification and the 2021 office memorandum.