SC refuses to restrain companies from extraction and sale of coal
17 Oct 2014 6:17 AM IST
A bench headed by Chief Justice H L Dattu said the apex court has granted six months’ time to wind up their operations and during this period the companies cannot be restrained from excavating coal. ‘No one can stop them because they have been given six months’ time. Why should court direct them not to extract coal during this period,’ the bench said.
Dattu’s observation had come following advocate M L Sharma’s plea who has requested the apex court to prevent these coal companies from mining. In his plea he claimed that the companies are extracting three to four times more coal per day as they have to wind up operations within six months.
Earlier, it was on Sharma’s plea that the apex court had cancelled most coal blocks allocation. Recently, he submitted that the companies should be restrained from mining, but the apex court refused to entertain his plea. On 24 September, in a landmark judgement, the Supreme Court revoked 214 coal blocks out of 218, allocated since 1993 and asked the concerned companies to wind up their operation by March 2015.
The ruling came as a major setback for the coal companies and the former prime minister Manmohan Singh, who was reportedly warned by his Cabinet colleagues and former CAG officials about the irregularities and undue favours being given to private players, while allocating the coal blocks.
It was learnt that the apex court observed that licences to the coal blocks were illegal and arbitrary, and a transparent process for their bids was not followed. There was respite for the four coal blocks run by the central government agencies.
Attorney general Mukul Rohatgi in his verdict said only four coal blocks had been spared because it is being used for ultra mega power projects by state companies.
Dattu’s observation had come following advocate M L Sharma’s plea who has requested the apex court to prevent these coal companies from mining. In his plea he claimed that the companies are extracting three to four times more coal per day as they have to wind up operations within six months.
Earlier, it was on Sharma’s plea that the apex court had cancelled most coal blocks allocation. Recently, he submitted that the companies should be restrained from mining, but the apex court refused to entertain his plea. On 24 September, in a landmark judgement, the Supreme Court revoked 214 coal blocks out of 218, allocated since 1993 and asked the concerned companies to wind up their operation by March 2015.
The ruling came as a major setback for the coal companies and the former prime minister Manmohan Singh, who was reportedly warned by his Cabinet colleagues and former CAG officials about the irregularities and undue favours being given to private players, while allocating the coal blocks.
It was learnt that the apex court observed that licences to the coal blocks were illegal and arbitrary, and a transparent process for their bids was not followed. There was respite for the four coal blocks run by the central government agencies.
Attorney general Mukul Rohatgi in his verdict said only four coal blocks had been spared because it is being used for ultra mega power projects by state companies.
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