HATIA SHRAMIK SANGH Vs. COAL INDIA LTD.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HATIA Shramik Sangh, a registered Union of Employees affiliated to the Central Organisation, namely, Bhartiya Majdoor Sangh (its Members being the workers of Heavy Engineering Corporation Ltd.) (HEC, for short) has filed this Public Interest Litigation (PIL), writ application under Article 226 of the Constitution of India for issuance of an appropriate writ, direction or order for quashing the entire tendering process subsequent to the opening of the price bid in favour of the Bharat Earth Movers Ltd. (BEML, for short) respondent No. 4 in the writ application and for other ancillary, consequential and additional reliefs as emanating from and/or based upon the opening of aforesaid price bid of BEML. It may be actually worthwhile to reproduce verbatim the reliefs claimed in the writ application. These reads thus : - -

(2.) COAL India Ltd. (CIL, for short) respondent No. 1 in this petition, issued a Notice Inviting Tenders (NIT, for short) for supply of twelve number of 10 M3 Electric Rope Shovels through Tender No. CIL/C2D/10M3 Elec. Rope Shovel/2001 -02/17. Due date and time for submission of the tender was up to 6.11.2001, 1 p.m., and the due date and time for opening of the tenders was the same date but at 3 p.m. What is of utmost relevance for our purposes is the very opening part of the NIT which reads thus :

(3.) IT is the undisputed case of the parties that after successive extensions in the due date for receipt of the tender and its opening, the aforesaid Global NIT ultimately came to be superseded by the NIT in -question. The distinction between the Global NFT and the NIT in -question was that whereas in the Global NIF sealed Bids were invited from proven Indian and Foreign Manufacturers, in the NIT in -question, sealed Bids were invited from the proven Indigenous Manufacturers. The word "indigenous", therefore, as the subsequent details would testify, indeed became very relevant and gave rise to contentious issues as far as this litigation is concerned.