Supreme Court stays CBI probe into Rs 5,832 crore beach sand mining 'scam' in Tamil Nadu

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the Madras High Court's February 17 order directing for a CBI probe into the alleged Rs 5,832 crore beach sand-mining 'scam' in Tamil Nadu.

A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Manmohan by an interim order also directed the parties to maintain a status quo in the case.

"We direct parties to maintain status quo. We also stay the Madras HC order for CBI probe," the bench said, issuing notice.

On February 17, 2025, the Madras High Court ordered the CBI to investigate the role of unknown public servants and directed the transfer of mineral stocks to Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL).

One of the affected parties, V V Mineral challenged the HC's orders.

Senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi, Siddarth Agarwal, and Dhruv Mehta, for VV Minerals, sought a direction for a status quo and stay on the CBI probe.

The CBI had on April 5, 2025 carried out raids across 12 locations in Tamil Nadu. It alleged illegal mining of rare minerals like monazite and a nexus between private firms, politicians, and officials.