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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
ALOK ARADHE, M.S. KARNIK
Coastal Marine Construction and Engineering Limited – Appellant
Versus
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. – Respondent
JUDGMENT :
M.S. KARNIK, J.
1. The petitioner - Coastal Marine Construction & Engineering Limited and another is one of the six bidders who bid for the project 'Offshore Pipeline Laying Works for Mahul-Rasayani Pipeline Project of Respondent No.1 - Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. ('BPCL' for short) in the first tender.
2. Invoking the jurisdiction of this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India the Petitioners pray for setting aside the cancellation dated 10th February 2025 of the tender bearing tender ID 16010 and dated 1st April 2024; for a direction to the BPCL to proceed with opening of the price bids of technically qualified bidders and award of the aforementioned tender from where it stood before the cancellation; for an appropriate direction for setting aside the new tender bearing tender ID 20077 and dated 22nd February 2025 issued by the BPCL for the work of the project; for a direction to adopt appropriate proceeding against Respondent No.3 - Corrtech International Ltd., Indian JV partner of Respondent No.4 and Respondent No.4 - Westfield Energy Resources Ltd., Nigeria based JV partner of Respondent No.3.
3. Mr. Bimal Rajasekhar, learned counsel appearing for th
The court upheld the cancellation of a tender by BPCL, emphasizing that tender evaluations are commercial functions and judicial review should not interfere unless decisions are arbitrary or irration....
The cancellation of a tender process before technical evaluation does not confer vested rights to bidders, and adherence to procurement laws is mandatory in future processes.
The authority may cancel a tender without reason if lack of competition is evident; bidders have no enforceable rights without formal acceptance of their bids.
The court emphasized that the power of judicial review in tender and contractual matters is intended to prevent arbitrariness, irrationality, unreasonableness, bias, and mala fides. It also highlight....
A lowest bidder has no indefeasible right to be awarded a contract, and tenders can be lawfully cancelled by authority based on valid reasons.
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