SC Questions Repeated Adjournments Sought By Odisha Govt In Sarda Mines Case

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday questioned the repeated adjournments sought by the Odisha government in the Sarda Mines case while posting the next hearing for April 6.

The apex court also asked why the government was not going ahead with the land survey despite the status quo order, ET Now reported.

In February, Sarada Mines Pvt Ltd (SMPL) had moved the SC seeking a direction to the Odisha government to execute the mining lease deed of over 947.046-hectare Thakurani B-Block Iron Ore Mines in Keonjhar district in its favour for the remaining 10 years out of the 30 years renewal, after it was asked to hand over possession of the mines, including stock of minerals, plant and machinery, building structures, etc to the mining officer.

Citing the Orissa High Court’s earlier orders of 1991 and 1998 and the state mining authorities’ February 1999, the company alleged that the state government had been denying and failing to comply with the central government’s and the HC’s repeated directions to renew the mining lease.

According to the company, the state government started to circumvent its rights for the remaining period of 10 years on some pretext or the other towards the end of 20 years. “The lease was executed with an express written understanding that the mining lease shall be executed for 20 years to start with and the balance 10 years will be executed after the expiry of the said period,” SMPL said in its appeal.

It further stated that the HC by an erroneous interpretation had come to the conclusion that the lease was for 20 years and not 30 years.  In January 2022, the HC rejected a similar plea on the grounds that its orders in 1991 and 1998 do not operate as constructive res judicata and SMPL had waived its right for grant of lease of 30 years by executing a lease for 20 years and the 2015 MMDR Act provisions operated as a bar to seek any renewal beyond 20 years.

Senior counsel Kapil Sibal and counsel Ankur Saigal, appearing for SMPL, however, argued that the company had surrendered one bigger block (measuring 2,590.4 acres of Thakurani Iron Ore Mines, Keonjhar) of the two mining leases and was granted the other block for 30 years under a settlement, which had received the HC’s nod in July 1998. The orders of the court also clearly establish that Sarda had received a crystallised and firm grant of mining lease for 30 years from the date of execution of the lease deed in December 1991, they stated.

The state government, on its part, argued that in 1989 a 30-year lease was promised to S L Sarda and M L Sarda family. However, a 20-year lease deed was executed with a different corporate entity, SMPL. It also reiterated its stand not to execute the mining lease period for another 10 years in favour of SMPL in an affidavit filed with the apex court recently.

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