The Bombay High Court has stayed the felling of 777 trees in Dahanu, following a public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the order dated January 28, 2025, issued by the Chief Officer of the Dahanu Municipal Council. The order had granted permission for tree felling under Section 8(2) of the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975 for the widening of a State Highway.

The Division Bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Arif Doctor, while hearing the petition, noted that the impugned order allegedly violates the statutory procedures under Section 8 of the Act of 1975, particularly the mandatory timelines for processing tree-cutting applications.

The Court issued notice to the respondents, returnable on March 25, 2025. The Additional Government Pleader, representing Respondent No. 3, waived formal service of notice.

Advocate Arjun Kadam appeared for the petitioner, while Additional Government Pleader O. A. Chandurkar appeared for the respondent.

Until further orders, the Court has imposed an interim stay on the felling of the trees, providing temporary relief to environmental activists and local residents opposing the move. "Issue notice to the Respondents, returnable on 25th March 2025. Learned Additional Government Pleader appears for the Respondent No.3 and waives service of notice. In the meanwhile, it is directed that the trees shall not be fell until further orders of this court," the Division Bench ordered.

The matter will next be heard on March 25, 2025.

About the PIL

The PIL filed through Advocate Arjun Kadam challenged the legality of the tree-cutting approval granted by the Dahanu Municipal Council’s Tree Authority. The petitioner had alleged serious violations of the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975 in granting the permission.

According to the petition, a public notice was issued on January 24, 2025, inviting objections regarding the proposed tree felling along the Maharashtra State Highway No. 30 (Dahanu-Jawahar-Mokhada-Trimbak Road). The petitioner submitted objections within the mandatory seven-day period but later discovered that the Tree Authority had already passed an order on January 28, 2025, allowing the felling of trees without proper consideration of objections.

On February 10, 2025, the petitioner witnessed workers chopping down trees at the site and attempted to stop the activity, but to no avail. In response, the petitioner approached the Bombay High Court, seeking urgent intervention.

Cause Title: Chauhan Foundation v. Dahanu Municipal Council [Public Interest Litigation No. 27 of 2025]

Appearance:-

Petitioner: Advcoate Arjun Kadam

Respondent: Advocates O. A. Chandurkar (Addl GP), G. R. Raghuwanshi (AGP)

Click here to read/download the Order


Chief Justice Alok AradheJustice Arif S. DoctorPublic Interest Litigation

Sukriti Mishra

Legal Correspondent

Sukriti Mishra is a Legal Correspondent at Verdictum. She extensively covers the Supreme Court. She has completed her graduation with BA. LL.B (Hons.) from The ICFAI University, Dehradun. Sukriti started covering courts in March 2022, she has previously worked with another legal news portal, where she extensively covered the Delhi High Court and Trial Courts.