ELECTRO STEEL CASTINGS LTD Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a petition filed by the Petitioner Electro Steel Castings Ltd., (ESCL) seeking review and recall of the order dated 26th February 2010 disposing of Writ Petition (C) 11556 of 2009.

(2.) THE background to the main writ petition is that the Petitioner is a public limited company having its office at Rajgangpur, Orissa and carrying on business of manufacture of ductile iron spun pipes, ductile iron fittings and cast iron sun pipes etc. Respondent No. 3 Steel Authority of India Limited ('SAIL) was on 6th January 1960 granted by the Mining and Geology Department, State of Orissa, Respondent No. 4, a mining lease (ML) over an area of 569.64 acres (230.55 hectares) in respect of limestone and dolomite in village Purnapani, District Sundergarh, Orissa for a period of 20 years. THE ML was renewed for a further period of 20 years on 6th January 1980 up to 5th January 2000.

(3.) THE Petitioner states that on 8th October 2007, it came across an advertisement inserted by SAIL in the Economic Times, Delhi Edition inviting "expression of interest" from the public at large to set up a joint venture company for manufacture of cement by using the slag generated by SAIL and the limestone available at Purnapani mines. According to the Petitioner, this invitation by SAIL of ,,expressions of interest made it clear that SAIL did not require the limestone or dolomite from the said mine for steel making since it had already large reserves of limestone and dolomite of blast furnace grade which was lying idle in various leasehold areas already granted to it. On the other hand, the Petitioner required limestone and dolomite for use in blast furnace for manufacture of pig iron, which was used as raw material for manufacture of ductile iron pipes, ductile iron fittings and cast iron spun pipes. THE Petitioner also proposed to expand its manufacturing capacity for which it required uninterrupted supply of limestone and dolomite for its captive consumption.