VASSUDEVA MADEVA SALGAOCAR Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Before us several petitions have been posted for hearing. They involve common questions of law and facts and it would have been possible for us to dispose of all of them by a common judgment and order. However, there may be some differences in some details about the facts involved in different petitions. Therefore, we prefer to narrate the facts involved in Special Civil Application No. 151 of 1975 which has been given the leading place by the advocates appearing for the petitioners in various petitions. After considering the facts in this petition and after deciding the questions of law arising in this petition, we will decide what relief, if any can be given to the petitioner in this petition as well as to petitioners in other petitions.

(2.) We must now proceed to narrate the facts. The petitioner in Special Civil Application No. 151 of 1975, hereinafter referred to as the petitioner, holds as grantee or Concessionario (concessionaire) various iron ore mines in the territory of Goa. The details of these grants or concessions have been mentioned in paragraph 3 of the petition. According to the petitioner, these concessions are held by him by virtue of various titles of concessions which were granted to him by the erstwhile Portuguese Government, under a decree dated 20th September, 1906 hereinafter referred to as the 1906 decree and it forms part of what can be broadly called the Portuguese Colonial Mining Laws which also deal with mining rights. It has been mentioned that the said titles of concessions have been given not only under the 1906 decree but also under the enabling legislations such as the Portuguese Colonical Mining Laws.

(3.) At this stage we may mention that an affidavit-in-reply was filed by one R.K. Nayak, who was the Deputy Secretary to Government of India, Department of Mines. That affidavit is dated 6th December, 1976. Subsequently, some other affidavits also have been filled. It would be unnecessary for us to refer to them except the one sworn in by one A.K. Venkatasubramanian, Director in the Department of Mines Ministry of Steel and Mines. This later affidavit is dated 2nd April, 1983 and has to be, for all purposes, regarded as one on which that respondents are placing reliance. However, for the snake of record we will refer to the earlier affidavit dated 6th December, 1976 filled by R.K. Nayak.