MADAN GOPAL RUNGTA THE TATA IRON STEEL CO LIMITED Vs. SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT OF ORISSA :SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal by special leave against the judgment of the Orissa High Court. The brief facts necessary for present purposes are these. The appellant made an application to the State Government of Orissa in 1949 for grant of a mining lease for manganese ore over an area comprising 5400 acres situated in the district of Keonjhar. The appellant was the first applicant for the lease of the aforesaid area, and subsequently other persons applied for lease of the same area including M/s. Tata Iron and Steel Company Limited (hereinafter referred to as Tatas), the intervener in the present appeal. The Government of Orissa decided to grant the lease in favour of Tatas and in January 1956 referred the matter in the Central Government for its approval under r. 32 of the Mineral Concession Rules, 1949 (hereinafter referred to as the Rules), which lays down that it more than one application regarding the same land is received, preference shall be given to the application received first, unless the State Government, for any special reason, and with the prior approval of the Central Government decides to the contrary. The appellant made a representation to the Central Government against the recommendation of the State Government. Eventually, on April 9, 1957, the Central Government turned down the recommendation of the State Government about the grant of the mining lease to Tatas. It also directed that the applications received prior to the application of Tatas should be considered according to the Rules but added that in case the Government of Orissa desired to work the area on a departmental basis, the Central Government would have no objection to consider a proposal for that purpose. Thereafter the State Government rejected the application of the appellant in December 1957 on the ground that the State Government proposed to arrange for the exploitation of the area in the public sector.

(2.) This was followed by an application for review to the Central Government under r. 57 of the Rules. This application was rejected by the Central Government in June 1959. Thereupon the appellant filed a petition under Art. 226 of the Constitution in the High Court in July, 1959. This petition was dismissed by the High Court on the ground that it had no jurisdiction to deal with the matter under Art. 226 as the final order in the case was passed by the Central Government which was located beyond the territorial jurisdiction of the High Court. The appellant then applied to the High Court for a certificate to appeal to this Court, which was rejected. He then asked for special leave from this Court, which was granted; and that is how the matter has come up before us.

(3.) The main question raised before us is the limit of the jurisdiction of the High Court under Art. 226 in circumstances like those in the present case. The contention on behalf of the appellant is that as the Central Government had merely dismissed the review petition, the effective order rejecting the appellant's application for the mining lease was that of he State Government and therefore the High Court could have jurisdiction to grant a writ under Art. 226, and that the principle laid down in Election Commision India vs. Venkata Rao, (1953) SCR l144 would not apply. Reliance in this connection has been placed on the decision of this Court in State of Uttar Pradesh vs. Mohammad Nooh, (1958) SCR 595.