GUPTA COAL (INDIA) LIMITED Vs. KIOCL LIMITED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Respondent No.1 KIOCL Limited (formerly Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited) is a wholly owned Government of India Enterprise established for the development of mines and plant facilities to produce iron ore etc., KIOCL floated an invitation to Tender dated 12.1.2012 and invited offers from interested parties for providing end to end logistics solution for transportation of 15,00,000 tones of iron ore from NMDC Mines at Kirandul and Bacheli (10/11A deposit) to the KIOCL Pellet Plant stock yard at Mangalore via Kakinada Deep Water Port and New Mangalore Port by rail cum sea route over a period of one year. As per the terms of the Tender, 1st respondent permitted the bidder to either make a bid individually or through a consortium.

(2.) The petitioners 1 and 2 entered into a consortium agreement inter-se for the purpose of submission of the bid. Thereafter the consortium consisting of 1st and 2nd petitioners submitted their Techno-Commercial Bid on 24.2.2012 alongwith the necessary deposit/fee as well as certain supporting documents. After receipt of the Techno- Commercial bid, the 1st respondent acknowledged the receipt of the same by way of an e.mail dated 2.3.2012 as per Annexure-K. The 1st respondent sought for certain clarifications as well as additional documents in respect of Techno-Commercial Bid submitted by the petitioners, which are as under:

(3.) Pursuant to the e.mail received from KIOCL, the 1st petitioner addressed a letter on 3.3.2012 bringing to the notice of the 1st respondent that as per Section 139(4) of the Income Tax Act, the petitioners have got opportunity to submit the Returns before the Income Tax Authority at any time before the expiry of one year from the end of the relevant assessment year. It is relevant to note that as on that date, the 1st petitioner i.e. one of the consortium members did not possess the acknowledged copy of the Income Tax Returns filed for the financial year 2010-11 from the Income Tax Authority. It was mandatory on the part of both the members of the consortium to submit the acknowledged copy of the Income Tax Returns filed for the financial year 2010-11 from the Income Tax Authority. Since the 1st petitioner did not possess the duly acknowledged copy of the Income Tax Returns filed for the said year, 1st petitioner informed the 1st respondent that the petitioners have got opportunity to furnish the Return at any time before the expiry of one year from the end of the relevant assessment year under Section 139(4) of the Income Tax Act. However, according to the petitioners, the 1st respondent intimated the 1st petitioner by an oral communication that the time to file the acknowledged copy of the Income Tax Returns for the financial year 2010-11 is extended up to 6th March 2012 in order to facilitate the 1st petitioner to submit the same. According to the petitioners, the acknowledged copy of the Income Tax Returns for the financial year 2010-11 was furnished before the 1st respondent by the petitioner No.1 on 6.3.2012. However, the same was delayed by a few hours. Copy of the said Income Tax Returns submitted by petitioner No.1 to the 1st respondent is produced at Annexure-N to the writ petitions.