The petitioner challenged the decision to reopen a bid. Subsequently, the authorities cancelled the entire bidding process via a letter invoking Tender Clause 2.16. The court held the petition infructuous as the process was cancelled before contract award. Dismissed.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION
WRIT PETITION NO.232 OF 2015
M/s.Oriental Structural Engineers Pvt.Ltd. ...Petitioner
V/s.
1.The Secretary (Roads) & Ors. ...Respondents
Mr.R.S.Apte, Senior Advocate i/b. Mr.Aniruddha A.Garge with Mr.Anil Airi, for the Petitioner.
Mr.N.P. Pandit, AGP for the Respondent-State.
Mr.Mahesh Londhe i/b. M/s.Sanjay Udeshi & Co., for Respondent No.6.
CORAM : MOHIT S. SHAH, C.J. AND G.S.KULKARNI, J.
DATE : 17 March 2015 ---
PC :
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6. Clause 2.16 of the Tender conditions reads as
under:-
“2.16 Rejection of Bids. 2.16.1 Notwithstanding anything contained in the RFP, the Authority reserves the right to reject any Bid and to annual the Bidding Process and reject all Bids at any time without any liability or any obligation for such acceptance, rejection or annulment, and without assigning any reasons therefor. In the event that the Authority rejects or annuls all the Bids, it may, in its discretion, invite all eligible Bidders to submit fresh Bids hereunder.
2.16.2 The Authority reserves the right not to proceed with the Bidding Process at any time, without notice or liability, and to reject any Bid without assigning any reasons.”
Mr.Pandit, learned AGP submits that the bidding process is not yet completed as no contract has been awarded to any party and, therefore, the respondents-authorities are well within their rights in taking the decision to cancel the bidding process. Learned AGP further submits that in view of the provisions of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, the Government has decided to resort to the fresh bid process after acquisition of the land, in case the Government decides to acquire the land for the above project.
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(CHIEF JUSTICE)
(G.S.KULKARNI, J.)
2 issues framed by the court
Whether the respondent-authorities could invoke Clause 2.16 to cancel the bidding process and reject all bids even though no contract had been awarded.
Whether the petitioner's challenge to the decision to reopen the bid of Respondent No. 6 survives in light of the subsequent cancellation of the bidding process.
2 provisions across 2 enactments
M/s. Oriental Structural Engineers Pvt. Ltd.
The Secretary (Roads) & Ors.
M/s. Supreme Infrastructure India Ltd.
MOHIT S. SHAH
G.S. KULKARNI
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
