KARIBASAVARAJU R. S/O LATE RUDRAPPA M. Vs. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA REPRESENTED BY ITS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT, HIGHER EDUCATION DEPARTMENT M.S. BUILDING, BANGALORE-560001 AND OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE gravamen of these Writ Petitions is that the respondent -university should itself procure services after due compliance with the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement Act, 1999. On behalf of the respondent university, it has been explained that it is still a nascent entity. To manage its engineering division, it will require staffing of several Engineers, Officers, Secretarial Stalls and Group -D employees. These have not been sanctioned. On the other hand, a sum of Rs 12.67 crores has been sanctioned by the UGC If the engineering division is fully staffed, it would require an annual expenditure of Rs.72 lakhs. Keeping in view these circumstances, the university thought it more prudent to carryout the procurement of services for construction purposes through the offices of KSPHC and CPWD which are Government agencies. An undertaking has been given to the effect that the provisions of the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement Act, 1999 shall be fully complied with by the said agencies for procurement. The argument of the learned counsel for the petitioner is that it is the University which should directly call for tenders for tailing services has therefore been dully explained by the learned counsel for the university.

(2.) WE find no merit in these Writ Petitions and the same are accordingly dismissed.