Reconsider plea for special bench on illegal mining cases, SC to Orissa HC

The Supreme Court has asked the Orissa High Court to reconsider its request for a dedicated bench to expedite the disposal of illegal mining cases, in which recovery of state dues worth thousands of crores of rupees remains stalled due to stay orders granted to mining companies.

In an order passed earlier this month, a bench of justices Dipankar Datta and Sheel Nagu asked the high court chief justice to reconsider its December 10, 2025, request for a special bench to hear petitions filed by mining companies. The top court was informed that the high court was facing a severe manpower shortage, with only 15 judges, including the chief justice, against a sanctioned strength of 33, leaving 18 posts vacant.

“We are quite alive to the factual situation that there is a dearth of judges in the high court of Orissa. However, at the same time, having regard to the interest of the state that is affected by reason of non-recovery of dues, justice would be sufficiently served if the chief justice of the high court of Orissa once again considers the desirability of constituting a dedicated bench where all the above-mentioned writ petitions and similar other writ petitions can be placed for consideration and early disposal,” the bench said.

The court asked the high court to pass appropriate administrative orders on the matter and scheduled the next hearing for December 8.

The order was passed in a petition filed by NGO Common Cause, in which the Supreme Court issued detailed directions in 2017 allowing the Odisha government to recover compensation from companies that had mined without the requisite environmental and forest clearances. The court permitted recovery of compensation for illegally mined ore through penalties under the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.

In an affidavit filed in 2023, the state assessed the total compensation payable against 133 mining leases at ₹18,526.47 crore. It recovered ₹15,561.19 crore, including interest, against 107 leases. The outstanding amount against the remaining 26 leases stood at ₹2,965.28 crore, excluding interest.

The Supreme Court directed that the affidavit be treated as an application, and has passed orders on it from time to time.

Common Cause, represented by advocates Prashant Bhushan and Pranav Sachdeva, told the bench that seven petitions filed by mining lease holders operating in Mayurbhanj, Sundargarh and Keonjhar districts were pending before the high court. Interim stays on recovery of compensation were granted in these cases between November 2025 and June 2026. In some cases, the state has also filed applications seeking to vacate the stays.

Additional solicitor general KM Nataraj, appearing for the state government, said the applications could not be heard due to the shortage of judges. The court was also informed that the high court had a pendency of more than 170,000 cases.

In its December 10 order, the Supreme Court had allowed Odisha to approach the high court chief justice to request that the petitions be assigned to a dedicated bench for final disposal by the end of March 2026, citing the substantial public revenue involved. As the cases remained unresolved beyond that deadline, the top court reiterated its request during proceedings on October 6.