SHRISHRI INFRASTRUCTURE PVT. LTD Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. The writ petition is taken up for hearing and final disposal, by consent and on the request of the learned Counsel for the parties.

(2.) By this petition, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner seeks to impugn the legality of the tender process followed by respondent Nos. 2 to 4 which resulted in the petitioner being held ineligible for the financial bid, which act of the respondent Nos. 2 to 4, according to the petitioner, is illegal, arbitrary and in violation of express terms of tender document dated 19.11.2020. The petitioner, therefore, prays for a writ directing respondent Nos. 2 to 4 to declare the petitioner as being eligible for the financial bid and further to declare the petitioner as the lowest bidder and therefore, entitled to the award of work under the said tender bid.

(3.) The petitioner is a private limited company duly registered under the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013. The petitioner is registered as a contractor with the Zilla Parishad, Jalgaon. The respondent No. 4 published a Public E-tender Notice bearing No.05/2020-21, on 19th November, 2020, inviting online percentage rate tenders from contractors registered with the Zilla Parishad for carrying out construction work of eight Primary Health Centers at various places within the Jalgaon district. As per the tender conditions, the bidders were required to fill up the online tender between 20.11.2020 and 14.12.2020 till 18.00 hours. The technical bid was scheduled to be opened on 16.12.2020. Clause 6 of the tender notice mandated five days gap between the opening of the technical and financial bids.