Panaji: In Rs 35,000 crore illegal mining case, The Bombay high court has castigated state govt for registering an FIR in the Rs 35,000 crore illegal mining case in contravention of Supreme Court directions.On March 22, 2013, the high court directed state govt to file an FIR, which was stayed by the Supreme Court on April 30, 2013.While quashing the FIR filed by Goa police’s crime branch based on the Justice M B Shah commission’s findings, Justice Amit Jamsandekar observed that the FIR was registered on the basis of directions issued by the division bench of the court.“If that is so, the first respondent ought not to have registered the FIR on Aug 12, 2013, pursuant to the order dated March 22, 2013, which was stayed by the SC on April 30,2013. The registration of the FIR on Aug 12, 2013, was in contravention of the stay order passed by the Supreme Court on April 30, 2013,” said Jamsandekar.FIR was registered by crime branch against public officials and persons identified in the Shah commission report. Thereafter, pursuant to the FIR, state govt constituted a special investigation team (SIT) to investigate the matter. Pursuant thereto, the SIT carried out a search and seizure operation.The high court observed that there has been no progress in the investigation since Aug 2013.The high court observed, “when the appeals and special leave petition (SLPs) were disposed of by the SC, the SC recorded the specific stand of the state of Goa that no action would be taken against the mining leases only on the basis of the findings of the Justice Shah commission report. The entire FIR is based on the Justice Shah commission report. Therefore, in view of the stand taken by the state of Goa before the SC, the FIR cannot sustain in view of the fact that the same is solely based on the report of the Justice Shah commission.”Senior advocate Shirish Gupte, appearing behalf of Salgaocar Mining Industries, submitted that in view of the order passed by the Supreme Court, nothing survives in the FIR registered pursuant to the order of the division bench of this Court. He further submitted that there has been no progress in the investigation, and therefore there is delay in the prosecution. Thus, the court ought to exercise its extraordinary jurisdiction by invoking its constitutional powers and the provisions of Section 528 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.The FIR was registered under Sections 120(b) (conspiracy) and 166 (public servant disobeying law) of the IPC, Sections 13(1) (d), 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, and sections of the Mines and Mineral Development Act, Mineral Concession Rules, Mineral Conservation and Development Rules and Goa Prevention of Illegal Mining, Transportation, Storage of Minerals Rules, 2004.A SIT was constituted on Aug 26, 2013, to investigate the illegal mining cases, and included four inspectors and a sub-inspector. They were supervised by the deputy inspector general of police (DIG).Former chief minister Manohar Parrikar stopped mining in Goa in Sept 2012 following the submission of the Shah commission report.
