The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a directive to the Rajasthan government to reassess all mining leases granted before 2011 that were awarded without a competitive auction process. This decision aims to rectify what the court described as “unjust” and “unethical” benefits accrued to affluent individuals due to non-transparent practices.
The bench, comprising Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh, expressed dismay over the discovery that several leases were allocated without adhering to the due process of auctioning, which they noted as a fundamental requirement for the distribution of state assets. “We are shocked to see that mining leases are granted in Rajasthan without following the due process of auction. State largesse cannot be given in a non-transparent manner,” the bench remarked.
This ruling reinforced a decision by the Jodhpur bench of the Rajasthan High Court, which had earlier canceled the lease of Divya Darshana in Pali district due to non-compliance with environmental norms. The Supreme Court emphasized that ordinarily, commercial properties owned by the state should be auctioned, and any deviation from this standard must meet stringent tests of reasonableness and transparency.
Addressing the state’s compliance with auction processes post-2011, the counsel for the Rajasthan government affirmed that no leases have been granted without auction since then. However, the court insisted on a review of all previous leases to prevent unjust enrichment and ensure fairness in the allocation of state resources.
