The Additional Chief Secretary of Haryana's Environment, Forests and Wildlife Department, Sudhir Rajpal, appeared before the National Green Tribunal (NGT) after a forest officer facing allegations of granting permission to fell trees filed an affidavit on behalf of senior department officials in the case.
What Happened in the Tree-Felling Case
The officer in question is Vishal Kaushik, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Morni-Pinjore. He is facing allegations of permitting the felling of trees in muwas village of Morni, located in Panchkula district. Despite these allegations, Kaushik filed an affidavit dated November 15, 2025, before the NGT on behalf of the respondents in the case. The respondents include senior officers of the department and a Range Forest Officer.
According to The Tribune, the issue came up during the hearing of a case titled Sheesh Pal vs State of Haryana before the Principal Bench of the NGT, which is headed by the Chairperson Justice.
ACS Forests Appears Before NGT
Following the filing of the affidavit by the accused officer, Additional Chief Secretary Sudhir Rajpal appeared before the NGT. His appearance was in connection with the same case, where the tribunal is examining the allegations of illegal tree felling and the actions of the forest department officials.
The NGT is now looking into the matter, which involves a forest officer accused of wrongdoing filing legal documents on behalf of his senior colleagues. This has raised questions about the internal processes within the department.
Our Take: A Troubling Conflict of Interest
In our view, this case presents a clear conflict of interest. A forest officer who is himself accused of permitting illegal tree felling should not be the one filing an affidavit for his seniors in the same case. It undermines the integrity of the legal process and raises doubts about accountability within the Haryana Forest Department. The NGT must examine not just the tree-felling allegations but also why an accused officer was allowed to represent the department's senior officials. This incident highlights the need for stricter protocols to ensure that those facing allegations are not involved in the official response to those very allegations.