Complicity Of State With Mafia Operating In Illegal Mining Of Coal & Its Transportation Is Clear And Obvious: Meghalaya High Court Raps Govt
The Meghalaya High Court has expressed deep concern over the laxity of the State in allowing tens of thousands of metric tonnes of coal to be cleared for export through land customs stations without verifying the source or origin of the coal. A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice W. Diengdoh said:“Several letters issued to the State by Central agencies and by the...
The Meghalaya High Court has expressed deep concern over the laxity of the State in allowing tens of thousands of metric tonnes of coal to be cleared for export through land customs stations without verifying the source or origin of the coal.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice W. Diengdoh said:
“Several letters issued to the State by Central agencies and by the Union Minister of Finance long prior to the suo motu proceedings pertaining to illegal coal-mining and illegal transportation of the illegally-mined coal being instituted in this Court, there is a rather wishy-washy explanation and the general refrain is that such letters required better coordination between the State administration and the Customs authorities to ensure that no illegally mined coal was exported in the garb of coal that had originated outside the State”.
The court called it "alarming" that despite the State understanding the purport of the request by the Central agencies, it was "so lax" that it allowed tens of thousands of metric tonnes of coal to be cleared for export through land customs stations within the State without, apparently, seeking to ascertain the source or origin of such coal.
"The complicity of the State with the mafia and the racket operating in the illegal mining of coal and its illegal transportation is clear and obvious and there can be little doubt that the higher-ups in the administration are the beneficiaries of the illegal gains and responsible for the colossal loss of revenue that has been occasioned to the State," said the court.
The bench said it still hopes that despite the "abysmal conduct of the State and its highest officials" in this matter, steps would be taken to arrest further illegal mining and its illegal transportation, "though the 13th interim report filed by Justice Katakey (retired) in the suo motu proceedings may indicate otherwise”.
Pointing to the presence of numerous coal dumps and depots along the National Highway in Goalpara district, connecting Guwahati to North Bengal, the court said it takes no rocket science or great IQ to infer as to how the coal originating in Meghalaya leads to these locations.
"The Central agencies suspected such activities and in the letters referred to in the previous order warned the State, including through the Union Minister of Finance. The State, not only did not take any steps, but actively concealed these letters from the Court with glib apology recorded above at paragraph 12 of its recent affidavit," the bench said, while listing the matter again for further consideration on June 15.
Case Title: Champer M. Sangma vs State of Meghalaya & ors