Union Of India And Anr vs Sova Ispat Limited And Ors

The Supreme Court addressed the interim order of the Calcutta High Court regarding the auction of the Ardhagram coal block under the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Second Ordinance, 2014. The Court noted that the Ordinance mandates public auction for coal mines previously allocated but later cancelled, as per Section 4, and that compensation for land and mine infrastructure is governed by Section 16. The Court held that the auction should proceed as planned, rejecting the first respondent's plea for a stay, while clarifying that the Union of India does not intend to acquire the respondent's end user plant without compensation, thus upholding the legality of the Ordinance.