SC clarified and Ensure fair Tender procedure Should be follows.

Supreme Court Upholds Fairness in Mega Project Tender Process

• Judicial Oversight: The Supreme Court clarified that while it cannot overturn government decisions regarding contract awards, authorities must act with fairness, reasonableness, and transparency in their processes.
• Uniform Application of Terms: If a government body chooses to deviate from essential contract terms, such deviations must be uniformly applied to all bidders, rather than selectively favoring a few.
• Public Authority Responsibilities: As public authorities, government bodies are obligated to uphold principles of fairness, equality, and public interest in all contractual dealings. The right to equality under Article 14 prohibits arbitrary actions.
• Transparency in Bidding: The court emphasized that public entities must ensure that the bidding process is free from bias or favoritism and conducted transparently.
• Tender Process Overview: The Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) issued a Notice Inviting Tender (NIT) on August 16, 2023. The appellant and another company submitted bids. The appellant provided a Power of Attorney (PoA) on November 7, 2023, which was notarized on November 14, 2023, and subsequently uploaded bid documents by November 29, 2023.
• Technical Bid Rejection: The technical bids were opened on December 4, 2023, and the appellant was disqualified on May 6, 2024, due to alleged non-compliance with Clause 10 of the NIT, specifically regarding the timing of the PoA.
• Legal Challenge: The appellant challenged the disqualification in a writ petition, which was dismissed by the Jharkhand High Court. The Supreme Court was then approached to determine if the rejection of the appellant’s technical bid was justified.
• Court’s Decision: The Supreme Court overturned the May 6, 2024, decision that rejected the appellant’s bid and declared the other company as the successful bidder. All actions taken based on this decision were annulled.
• Next Steps for BCCL: The court ruled that BCCL could initiate a new tender process for the project and handle it in accordance with the law.
• Legal Representation: The appellant was represented by Senior Advocate Ravi Shankar Prasad, while the government was represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and other senior advocates.

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