The Supreme Court has decided to examine the Rajasthan High Court's January 20, 2026 order that cancelled 93 sand mining leases in Rajasthan, and has directed an immediate halt to all mining operations by both lease holders and Letter of Intent (LOI) holders.
Bench Issues Notice on State's Petition
A bench comprising Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma on Wednesday issued notice on the Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the Rajasthan government and other lease holders challenging the High Court decision. The matter has been listed for hearing in the third week of July 2026.
State's Arguments Before the Apex Court
Before the Supreme Court, the State argued that the High Court had “wrongly interpreted” the report of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) and, on that basis, quashed 93 e-auction mining leases in the districts of Tonk, Bhilwara, Sawai Madhopur, and Ajmer.
Rajasthan's Additional Advocate General Shiv Mangal Sharma submitted, “The State contended that all these leases were granted under the new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) and revised regulatory framework introduced in 2023. According to the government, the revised framework incorporates environmental safeguards, replenishment studies, and District Survey Report (DSR) mechanisms.”
He further added, “It was also argued that the High Court had excessively expanded the scope of earlier orders passed by the Supreme Court and the CEC report by applying old conditions to the new regulatory regime. The government maintained that the present 93 leases are entirely distinct from the earlier 82 Letter of Intent (LOI) matters.”
Impact on Mining and Infrastructure
The State informed the court that the High Court order has had “far-reaching consequences” for sand mining operations, revenue collection, and public infrastructure projects across Rajasthan.
Attorney General for India R. Venkataramani and Additional Advocate General Sharma represented the State of Rajasthan. The parties that had originally moved the Rajasthan High Court opposed the State's SLP.
