The court held that mining lease renewal applications must adhere strictly to statutory timelines, rendering post-expiration submissions invalid.

JUDGMENT :

Sujit Narayan Prasad, J.

1. This writ petition is under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking for the following reliefs: -

“For issuance of an appropriate writ/order/direction, including Writ of Certiorari, for quashing order passed by Respondent No.3 contained in Memo No. 276/M, dated 04.03.2025, (Annexure-10) wherein application filed by Petitioner for renewal of its mining lease over an area of 2.80 acres, situated at Mouza Suraidih, Thana Hiranpur, Plot No. 63 (part), 64(part) and 65(part) in the District of Pakur, has been rejected in a most illegal and arbitrary manner.

(ii) For issuance of further appropriate writ/order/direction, including Writ of Mandamus, directing Respondents to consider and consequentially grant renewal of mining lease in favour of Petitioner, pertaining to mining lease of stone boulders over an area of 2.80 acres, situated at Mouza Suraidih, Thana Hiranpur, Plot No. 63 (part), 64(part) and 65(part) in the District of Pakur, for a period of 10 years commencing from 01.04.2022 to 31.03.2032.

(iii) For issuance of further appropriate writ/order/direction, including Writ of Declaration, declaring that amendment carried out under Jharkhand Minor Mineral Concession Rules , 2004 (for short ’JMMC Rules’) vide Jharkhand Minor Mineral Concession (Amendment) Rules, 2017 (Annexure-2), Jharkhand Minor Mineral Concession (Amendment) Rules, 2019 (Annexure-3) and Jharkhand Minor Mineral Concession (Amendment) Rules, 2020 (Annexure-4) do not prohibit grant of renewal of mining lease, but only provides, inter alia, that any new lease over 3 hectares of land would be granted in terms Jharkhand Minor Mineral (Auction) Rules, 2017 (Annexure-5).

(iv) For issuance of any other appropriate writ(s)/order(s)/direction(s) as Your Lordships may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case.”

2. The brief facts of the case, as per the pleading made in the writ petition, requires to be enumerated, which read as under: -

(i) It is the case of the writ petitioner that the petitioner was granted mining lease over an area of 2.80 acres, situated at Mouza Suraidih, Thana Hiranpur, Plot No.63 (part), 64(part) and 65(part) in the District of Pakur, for a period of 10 years from 07.06.2010 to 05.06.2020. In terms of provisions of JMMC Rules, 2004, the period of said mining lease was extended up to 31.03.2022 by supplementary lease deed for extension of minor minerals dated 30.12.2020.

(ii) The writ petitioner, prior to expiry of its Mining lease deed, on several occasions attempted before the respondent- authorities for filing application for renewal of mining lease but such application for renewal of mining lease was not being accepted by the respondent authorities. The respondent-State of Jharkhand, on the pretext of alleged amendment carried out under JMMC Rules, 2004 was not granting any renewal of mining lease.

(iii) The writ petitioner has been further advised to annex provisions of JMMC (Auction) Rules, 2017 and from bare perusal of the said Auction Rules also, it would be evident that the said Auction Rules only contemplates grant of fresh mining lease/concession through auction and does not deal with the applications pertaining to renewal of mining lease.

(iv) Despite the fact that such right of renewal has been stipulated in statutory lease deed itself, respondent-authorities on the pretext of aforesaid amendment, were not extending benefit of renewal of mining lease nor were giving extension of renewal of mining lease. In this context, it is stated that the petitioner is in possession of a document pertaining to renewal of its mining lease, wherein the Deputy Commissioner, Koderma, in respect of the said applicant for renewal of mining lease, clearly stated that in view of the amendment made in JMMC Rules, 2004, there is no provision for renewal of mining lease. In fact, said understanding of Deputy Commissioner, Koderma was the prevalent understanding of the concerned authorities across the Stat