Supreme Court cancels 214 coal allocations made since 1993; Sasan, NTPC, SAIL escape axe

Less than a month after a judgment delivered on August 25 this year declaring all coal block allocations as illegal, the Supreme Court today cancelled 214 coal block allocations made since 1993..Only four allocations have been spared the axe – Moher and Moher Amroli Extension allocated to Sasan Power Limited, Tasra allotted to Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and Pakri Barwadih allotted to National Thermal Power Corporation Limited (NTPC). The latter two are Public Sector Undertakings not having any joint ventures..The order was passed by a Bench presided by Chief Justice RM Lodha and comprising Justices Madan B Lokur and Kurian Joseph..Out of the 214 cancelled allotments, forty-two coal blocks with respect to which end use plants are already functional or are about to become functional have been allowed a six-month window; cancellation with respect to these blocks would only come into force from March 31, 2015 onwards..The Court has also directed that the,.“allottees of the coal blocks other than those covered by the judgment and the four coal blocks covered by this order must pay an amount of Rs. 295/- per metric ton of coal extracted as an additional levy.”.In its judgment, the Court has relied extensively on the arguments of Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi. Rohatgi had repeatedly said that the Central government was prepared to face the consequences of these licenses being cancelled..The Court on August 25 had declared the allocations as illegal but was undecided on the consequences of its verdict given the fact that it could have considerable ramifications. The Court had then afforded the luxury of a brief hearing to all the interested parties after which it delivered today’s verdict..Read the full judgment below..Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.