TARA PRASAD SINGH Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a group of 61 Writ Petitions under Art. 32 of the Constitution, challenging the validity of the Coal Mines (Nationalisation) amendment Act, 67 of 1976, on the ground that it is violative of the provisions of arts. 14, 19 (1) (f), 19 (1) (g) and 31 of the Constitution. For understanding the basis of that challenge, it will be enough to refer to the broad facts of two representative groups of petitions. The facts of writ petitions 270 and 271 of 1977 are, by and large, typical of cases in which the petitioners claim to be lessees of coal mines, while the facts of writ petition 257 of 1977 are typical of cases in which the petitioners claim to be lessees of composite mines containing alternate seams of coal and fireclay. Most of the facts are undisputed and only a few of them are in controversy.

(2.) In writ petitions 270 and 271 of 1977, petitioner No. 1 claims to be the sole proprietor of 'S. D. Coal Company' which is engaged in coal business and coal mining operations. Petitioner No. 2 is said to be the agent of the company. Both the surface and underground rights in Mouza Bundu in the District of Hazaribagh, Bihar, previously belonged to the Raja of Ramgarh from whom or whose successors-in-interest, the South Karanpura Coal Co. Ltd. appears to have obtained a lease of 242 Bighas of coal bearing lands in Mouza Bundu, called the Bundu Colliery'. After the enactment of the Bihar Land Reforms Act, 30 of 1950, all rights of tenureholders, landlords and Zamindars, including the rights in mines and minerals, vested in the State of Bihar but, by virtue of S. 10 of that Act, subsisting leases of mines and minerals in any estate or tenure became leases under the State Government. It is alleged that on 12th June, 1975 the South Karanpura Coal Co. Ltd. entered into an agreement with the S. D. Coal Company for prospecting, developing, raising and selling coal from the Bundu Colliery and that on the strength of that agreement, petitioner No. 1 was put in possession of the entire area of 242 Bighas of coal bearing land. The S. D. Coal Company is stated to have made large investments in the colliery and to have started paying rents and royalty to the State of Bihar. The petitioners have cited various facts and figures in support of their contention that they have been in working possession of the coal mine are in question and that they were entitled to remove nearly 30,000 tonnes of coal raised by them at a heavy cost. It appears that in a proceeding under S. 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code, the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (Sadar), Hazaribagh, had made the rule absolute against the South Karanpura Coal Co. Ltd. as well as the S. D. Coal Company, on the ground that the State Government had taken over the Bundu Colliery. But, in C. R. Case No. 18318 (W) of 1975, the High Court of Calcutta is stated to have set aside the order of the State Government cancelling the lease of petitioner 1 in respect of the Bundu Colliery. Since that lease stands terminated under the Coal Mines (Nationalisation) Amendment Act 1976, the petitioners have filed writ petitions to challenge the validity of that Act.

(3.) On the factual aspect, the contention of the State of Bihar is that the lease of the Bundu Colliery which was held by M/s. South Karanpura Coal Co. Ltd. was terminated by the Bihar Government on Nov. 24, 1975 on account of the violative of Rule 37 of the Mineral Concession Rules, 1960 and that, actual possession of the colliery was taken by the State Government on Nov. 26, 1975 prior to the coming into force of the Amendment Act of 1976.