LAXMI AGENCIES Vs. STATE OF TELANGANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner claims to be engaged in supplying medicines and surgical items and furniture to Medical & Health Departments of the States of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and has been in business for more than 20 years. Petitioner claims that it has been participating in tender process for award of contract for supply of various items and has been successfully supplying the items in due compliance of the terms of the contract. Telangana Minorities Residential Educational Institutions Society is established to establish and manage Residential Educational Institutions for Minorities. The respondent-society floated three tenders. First tender was floated on 14.03.2019 calling for submission of tender to supply school uniforms and sports uniforms to the students, shoes, shocks, towels, bed sheets, carpets, pillow covers, tie, belt, ID card holders. On 16.03.2019, second tender was floated. In this notification, tenders are called to supply cosmetic kits, stationery, art and craft material, and school/college stationery, school/college bags. Third tender was floated on 20.03.2019. By these notifications, tenders are called to supply cots, desks, dining tables, security huts. The first two tender notifications were restricted to Government Agencies/Government Undertaking Agencies. Third tender is opened to all. In this Writ Petition, petitioner challenges the clause in tender notifications dated 14.03.2019 and 16.03.2019 restricting the field of consideration only to Government Agencies/Government Undertaking Agencies.

(2.) Heard learned counsel for petitioner Sri Vedula Srinivas, learned standing counsel for respondent-society and the learned Government Pleader.

(3.) According to learned counsel for petitioner, the restriction to Government Agencies amounts to offending the right to participating Government tenders flowing out of Articles 14 and 19 of the Constitution of India and, therefore, such restriction is ex facie illegal. None of the Government Agencies undertakes supply of items notified and they can only act as agencies, who can procure the items from various suppliers/manufacturers and supply the items to the society. Petitioner is also evolved supplying these items to the Government Agencies and Government Undertakings for the last twenty years. If an opportunity was afforded to the petitioner, he can offer competitive price and supply quality items by procuring from various manufacturers. Since the Government Agencies/Government Undertakings are not involved in manufacturing/production of items notified in the tender notifications, restricting to such Government Agencies/ Government undertakings is ex facie illegal and unconstitutional. It amounts to unreasonable restriction, classification without any intelligible differentia and has no nexus to the object sought to be achieved and, therefore, liable to be set aside.