ASHOKE KR BANERJEE Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, in this application under Article 226 of the Constitution of India prays, inter alia, for certain mutually exclusive orders for directing the respondents concerned to take delivery of coal mixed with the mining operation of fire clay upon payment of costs and expenses for lifting of such coal from the fire clay mine of the petitioner and to direct the respondents to enable the petitioner to carry on smoothly the fire clay mining operation of the petitioner in terms of the deed of lease dated August 2, 1975 and for quashing "the" purported order "if there be any", not to prevent the petitioner from carrying on the fire clay mining operation in terms of the aforesaid deed of lease. The respondent No. 3 Eastern Coal fields Ltd. has contested the case by filing an affidavit-in-opposition.

(2.) Bereft of verbiage the short case of the petitioner is that by a registered deed of lease dated August 2, 1975, a copy of which has been annexed to the petition marked with the letter 'A', the Government of West Bengal granted to the petitioner a mining lease for fire clay in respect of the land measuring about 43 acres. Clause 9 of Part VII of the aforesaid lease, inter alia, requires the lessee to report to the State Government the discovery in the leased area, of any mineral not specified in the lease within 60 days of such discovery along with the full particulars of nature and position of each such find. If any mineral not specified in the lease is discovered in the leased area, the lessee shall not win and dispose of such mineral unless such mineral is included in the lease or separated lease is obtained therefor.

(3.) It is stated that in course of the mining operation of the said fire clay mine the petitioner noticed that some inferior quality of coal was coming out mixed with fire clay.