IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR
Writ Petition No.7295 of 2017
Along with
Writ Petition No.6559, 6560, 6561, 6562, 6563, 6564,
6565, 6566, 7026, 7122, 7296, 7297, 7298, 7299, 7307, 7308, 7338, 7295,
Roshan s/o Kishor Baseriya,
Aged 28 years,
Occupation - Business,
R/o Morbagh, Amravati. ... Petitioner
Versus
1. State of Maharashtra,
In the Ministry of Revenue & Forest,
Mantralaya, Mumbai-32,
through its Secretary.
2. District Collector,
Amravati. ... Respondents
Coram : R.K. Deshpande & Arun D. Upadhye, JJ.
Dated : 9 July 2018
Oral Judgment (Per R.K. Deshpande, J.):
1. Rule, made returnable forthwith. Heard finally by consent of the learned counsels appearing for the parties.
2. The mining leases of the petitioners are either on the threat of cancellation in response to the show cause notices or there are actually orders passed cancelling the mining leases.
Before us, the Collector has tried to justify the action on the basis of the decision of the Apex Court in the case of Jagpal Singh & Ors. v. State of Punjab & Ors., reported in 2011 (11) SCC 396, the Government Resolution dated 12-7-2011, and the amended provision of Section 22A of the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, wp7295.17+.odt 1966. According to the Collector, the land granted on lease was a Gairan/Gurcharan land, which has to be handed over to the Local Bodies and the lease for mining purposes in respect of it is prohibited.
3. After hearing the learned counsels for the parties, we find that the show cause notices or the orders challenged in all these petitions need to be set aside for the sole reason that there does not seem to be any enquiry conducted as to whether the land granted on lease to the petitioners was actually reserved at any point of time as Gairan/Gurcharan land and shown as such in the revenue record. Some of the petitioners are granted lease in respect of the lands in question in the year 2013, i.e. even after issuance of the Government Resolution, which may create a presumption that the authorities before granting lease have verified whether the grant of lease is in accordance with the provisions relied upon by the Collector before us. Be that as it may, even if no such enquiry was conducted previously, we do not find any impediment in the Collector going ahead with such wp7295.17+.odt enquiry, but the findings have to be based upon some material to be disclosed in the orders or even in the show cause notices.
4. We, therefore, allow all these petitions and quash and set aside the show cause notices as well as the orders cancelling the mining leases, issued to the petitioners. We direct all the petitioners to appear before the Collector on 16-7-2018, on which date the parties shall be given a suitable date for appearance before the Collector. The parties shall also be given an opportunity of being heard in the matter. The revenue record, if any, shall be collected and due enquiry shall be made and thereafter appropriate orders accordingly shall be passed within a period of three months from today. We make it clear that it shall be open for the petitioners to file an application before the Collector for issuance of royalty passes. The Collector shall decide the question of issuing royalty passes to the petitioners on or before 24-7-2018.
5. Rule is made absolute in the aforesaid terms. No order as to costs.
(Arun D. Upadhye, J.) (R.K. Deshpande, J.)
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