Overview
- Chief Justice B. R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran allowed review petitions and set aside the May 16 Vanashakti ruling, while Justice Ujjal Bhuyan dissented.
- The recall revives the 2017 notification and 2021 Office Memorandum that allow limited retrospective clearances with penalties and strict scrutiny.
- Clearances already granted remain protected, and any violator seeking regularisation must undergo full appraisal rather than receiving automatic approval.
- The majority called the May decision per incuriam for not considering earlier two‑judge precedents such as D Swami (2022) and Pahwa Plastics (2022), which endorsed limited post‑facto approvals.
- The court cited the risk of demolishing public projects worth about ₹20,000 crore, including an AIIMS facility in Odisha and a planned airport at Vijayanagar, and ordered the issues to be heard by a larger bench as industry and government welcomed the relief and environmental groups objected.