M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (Oleum Gas Leak)
Supreme Court of India(1987) 1 SCC 395Bench: Supreme Court of India
Related sections: Articles 21, 32
The Court evolved the principle of absolute liability for hazardous industries and linked environmental safety to Article 21. The holding reflects the result and the principal reasons accepted by the court, while recognising that separate opinions may have used different reasoning. In recording this field for M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (Oleum Gas Leak), the emphasis is on the operative legal controversy, the constitutional or statutory setting, and the precise institutional consequence of the decision rather than on later popular summaries. The description should be read with the reported judgment, because landmark decisions often contain several concurring or dissenting opinions, different reasons, and later qualifications. For database use, this note separates held from broader commentary: it identifies the controlling principle, the procedural posture, and the relief actually granted or refused without adding unverified facts. In recording this field for M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (Oleum Gas Leak), the emphasis is on the operative legal controversy, the constitutional or statutory setting, and the precise institutional consequence of the decision rather than on later popular summaries. The description should be read with the reported judgment, because landmark decisions often contain several concurring or dissenting opinions, different reasons, and later qualifications. For database use, this note separates held from broader commentary: it identifies the controlling principle, the procedural posture, and the relief actually granted or refused without adding unverified facts.