The Chhattisgarh High Court has dismissed a petition challenging the cancellation of community forest rights granted to villagers of Ghatbarra in the Hasdeo Arand forest, where an Adani Enterprises-owned entity is operating the Parsa East and Kete Basen coal mines. The court order has, for the first time, addressed the question of whether forest rights granted under the 2006 Forest Rights Act (FRA) can be revoked or cancelled, given that the law does not explicitly provide for any such measure.
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In an order dated October 8, a Single Bench of Justice Rakesh Mohan Pandey stated that granting the community forest rights in itself was a “mistake” that was “rectified” through the cancellation, concluding that this made the order granting the rights “void ab initio”.
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The order came on a batch of petitions initially filed by the Forest Rights Committee of Ghatbarra village, a statutory body under the Forest Rights Act. It was later joined by civil society organisations like the Hasdeo Arand Bachao Sangharsh Samiti and petitioners who said they were residents of Ghatbarra village. The petition, initiated in 2016, saw the Forest Rights Committee withdraw its application, leaving the Hasdeo Arand Bachao Sangharsh Samiti contest it.
