“Mines Can’t Operate After 15 March”, Says Supreme Court As It Cancels Mining All Leases In Goa

The Supreme Court today (7 February) quashed 88 mining licences granted by the Government of Goa for violating procedure and ordered for fresh licences to be given out after a bidding process is conducted.

The bench, headed by Justice Madan B Lokur said that leases renewed for a second time would run till 15 March after which they would lapse, reports Mint.

Terming the government’s process of renewing leases as “violative of the law”, it directed the setting up of a special investigative team (SIT) that would include a chartered accountant to recover the money made by mining firms.

The ruling came when the apex court was responding to a 2015 petition filed by an NGO called the Goa Foundation, represented by lawyer Prashant Bhushan. Bhushan claimed that the process of renewal did not fall in line with the apex court’s view on optimum utilisation of resources and that the state should have gone for autions instead of renewals.

In August 2013, the Panaji bench of the Bombay High Court directed the state government to proceed with the second round of renewal of leases in favour of those companies that had already paid stamp duty.