DEVKABAI VELJI Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner, a partnership firm was leased out certain land for mining Manganese Ore and Iron Ore. After the land was leased out, the petitioner was mining Manganese Ore and Iron Ore. Suddenly, an order was passed to the effect that the petitioner did extract Manganese in excess to the extent of 7225.249 MT which was illegal in terms of Section 21(5) of the MMRD Act. Likewise, it was also found that the petitioner has mined Iron Ore in excess to the extent of 532176.948 MT which is also illegal as it was in contravention of the said provision as stated above and thereby an order was passed as contained in letter no. 417/M dated 8.3.2013 that the petitioner is liable to make payment of a sum of Rs. 7212089.174 and also a sum of Rs. 217460199.018 for mining Manganese Ore and Iron Ore illegally respectively. That order was challenged.

(2.) WHILE the matter was pending, two demand notices as contained in Annexure 3 and Annexure 3/1 to the Interlocutory application bearing no. 3079 of 2014 were issued by the respondent no. 4 to the petitioner calling upon him to show cause as to why he be not ordered to make payment of the aforesaid amount with interest on account of extracting Manganese Ore and also Iron Ore in excess as has been stated above.

(3.) FURTHER it was submitted that in fact, such kind of order was passed in case of number of lessees. Some of them had filed Revision application before the Central Government where the orders passed against them were found to be illegal as the order has been passed without hearing them and therefore, the order was set aside and the matter was remanded back so that the authority may pass a fresh order after giving opportunity to the lessee.