Supreme Court Clears Way for GMR to Operate and Upgrade Nagpur Airport

Supreme Court/ File pic

The Supreme Court of India has granted GMR Airports permission to operate and upgrade Nagpur's Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport, following the dismissal of a curative petition filed by the Centre and the Airports Authority of India (AAI). The petition challenged the Supreme Court's earlier dismissal of their review case against a Bombay High Court decision in favour of GMR Airports, reported PTI.

According to the report, a special four-judge bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud adjourned the proceedings after hearing Solicitor General Tushar Mehta's testimony.

The Solicitor General admitted that the curative petition did not meet the legal standards for such a plea, which is the ultimate legal remedy in cases involving violations of natural justice or judicial bias, the report added.

The Bombay High Court had already overturned MIHAN India Ltd (Multi-Modal International Cargo Hub and Airport at Nagpur)'s 2020 decision to revoke GMR Airports' contract to upgrade and operate the Nagpur airport. The HC had said, "We find that the impugned communication is arbitrary, unfair and unreasonable and, therefore, it deserves to be quashed and set aside."

In May 2022, the Supreme Court upheld the ruling, finding that it was fair and well-reasoned. "We are of the considered opinion that the findings recorded by the High Court allowing the writ petition are in accordance with law. Those findings do not suffer from any illegality, warranting interference by this court in exercise of the power under Article 136 of the Constitution. All these appeals are hereby dismissed," a bench of Justices Vineet Saran, since retired, and J K Maheshwari had said on May 9, 2022.

Reportedly, the Centre and the AAI claimed that they were not granted a thorough hearing in the High Court. However, the Supreme Court rejected this allegation, holding that government contracts must be fair and equitable. Despite this, the Court accepted the Solicitor General's request that the assertion in the ruling that the AAI and Centre were not necessary parties be revisited in future cases.

The high court had said the communication, issued to GMR Airports Ltd by MIHAN India Ltd deserved to be quashed and set aside.

The judgement effectively allows GMR Airports to proceed with the upgrade of the Nagpur airport, a critical project for the region's infrastructural growth.