SANJAY GARG Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This judgment shall dispose of aforementioned writ petitions as common questions of facts and law are involved therein. The facts are being extracted from CWP No.29916 of 2019 titled as Sanjay Garg and another Vs. State of Haryana and others.

(2.) Respondent No.2-Haryana State Industrial & Infrastructure Development Corporation (for short 'HSIIDC') issued an advertisement dated 8.3.2019, inviting applications from the general public for auction of plots in a number of Industrial Estates in the State of Haryana. Industrial Estate, Kundli, was also part of the advertisement. The petitioners applied for plots in the said industrial estate and the last date for receipt of application was 22.3.2019. The last date was extended to 31.7.2019, vide a subsequent advertisement. E-auction was conducted on 25.8.2019 and 26.8.2019. The petitioners' bid for 1000 sq. mtr. plots for which the reserve price for Rs.23,905/- per sq. mtr. They made the highest bid of Rs.34,905/- per sq. mtr. and Rs. 35,105/- per sq. mts., respectively. The bid was not accepted and HSIIDC issued a letter dated 26.9.2019, informing the petitioners about the rejection of their bids. In the said letter, it was mentioned that highest bids of all sizes of industrial plots in Industrial Estate, Kundli, had been rejected and that the same would be offered for allotment through a fresh advertisement.

(3.) Learned senior counsel for the petitioners has submitted that plots in as many as 23 Industrial Estates were the subject matter of advertisement dated 8.3.2019. Auctions held in all the other industrial estates have been confirmed, but the applicants of plots in Industrial Estate, Kundli, have been discriminated against. The HSIIDC being an instrumentality of State, could not have singled out the applicants of Industrial Estate, Kundli, for a different treatment. Apart from that, it is submitted that the bids submitted by the petitioners were almost Rs.11,000/- per sq. mtr. higher than the reserve price and the rejection of the bids appears to be mala fide. He thus, prays that the rejection of the highest bids of the petitioners be quashed and HSIIDC be directed to issue letters of allotments to the petitioners as has been done in the case of applicants of other industrial estates. He also places reliance upon a Division Bench judgment dated 13.2.2019, passed in CWP No.31711 of 2018 titled as Ashish Jain Vs. HSIIDC and another.