Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Oct 11: High Court said it has no expertise to correct or review an administrative decision and dismissed the plea challenging the order whereby technical bid issued by Executive Engineer Projects was cancelled.
The petitioner-Ranjit Publicity Pvt Ltd claiming to be a Micro Small Medium Enterprises (MSME) Unit and having participated in the tendering process for fixing Static Ad Panels in different areas but his bid has been cancelled, by issuance of writ of Certiorari vide order dated 9.1.2023.
Justice M A Chowdhary dismissed the petition and recorded that the court having no expertise to correct an administrative decision, cannot sit as a court of appeal, to review the administrative decision so as to substitute its own decision.
Court said the cancellation of technical bid of the petitioner does not seem to be actuated by any mala fide and intended to favour someone as the process adopted by the official respondents cannot be said to be arbitrary or irrational, for any interference by this court.
“The public interest also does not seem to have been affected. Rather it has been brought to the notice of this court that the tender in question was 6th in a row as the earlier five tenders have not received any response so as to culminate into the contract. Therefore, the public interest for not finalizing the contract would, otherwise, suffer in case the technical bid of another contractor as accepted by the respondent-officials is not allowed again, by interference by this Court”, read the judgment.
Court concluded that the petitioner has failed to substantiate its plea, so as to warrant any interference by this court into administrative decision of the respondents, vide impugned order dated 09.01.2023.
The court on perusal of record as disclosed by the official respondent-officials said, the petitioner had defaulted not only in his experience but had failed almost on ten counts as mentioned and is not able to satisfy the technical bid conditions so as to qualify the same.
“The respondent-Tender Inviting Authority has thus rightly shown the bid of the petitioner as ‘not admitted’ and declared another contractor as successful bidder issuing him a Letter of Intent”. Court has referred various citations of apex court holding that the tender inviting authority is the best person to understand and appreciate its requirement and tender documents.
The failure on the part of the petitioner to satisfy the technical terms of the bid, it was declared unsuccessful vide impugned communication, as such, financial bid was opened on-line and the eligible contractor was declared as successful bidder and the Joint Commissioner Works issued Letter of Intent (LoI) for advertised and accepted amount asking eligible contractor to submit 3% of it amounting to the total executing amount as performance security.
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