Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and the State.

2. This writ application has been preferred for the following reliefs :-

“I. For directing the Respondents, including the Tender Evaluation Committee consisting of Respondents as also Respondent no.5, the Executive Engineer R.C.D., Road Division, Purnia to consider the Tender submitted by the Petitioner for NIT No.19/2018-19/RCD/Purnia as the petitioner has submitted the same for the work for which tender notice has been issued but is being sought to be excluded arbitrarily;

(ii) For direction that since the defect pointed out by the respondent was in fact a removable/innocet defect, the petitioner could not have been declared to be disqualified thereby denying his participation in the financial bid;

(iii) For directing the Respondent to open the financial bid of the petitioner along with other bidders as the petitioner has qualified all the required qualification for submission of the Bid; and/or to pass such other relief or reliefs for which the petitioner is found entitled to the facts and circumstances of the present case.”

3. The petitioner is a private limited company engaged in the execution of works contract in various states including the State of Bihar. It is stated that pursuant to the Notice Inviting Tender (NIT) bearing no.19/2018-19/RCD/Purnia dated 05.01.2019 issued from the office of the Executive Engineer, Road Construction Department, Road Division, Purnia (hereinafter ‘RCD’) for widening and strengthening of Dhamdahad (Nehru Chowk) to Bihariganj Border via Barhara Kothi road from KM. 0.00 to 20.25 at the estimated cost of Rs.9268.91702 lacs, the petitioner submitted its tender with the required Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) of Rs.1,02,70,000.00 (one crore two lacs seventy thousand) by way of bank guarantee dated 8.2.2019 issued from the Axis Bank Branch, Office at Spectrum House, Sevoke Road, Siliguri, West Bengal addressed to the Executive Engineer, Road Construction Department, Road Division, Purnia. A copy of the bank guarantee has been brought on record as Annexure-2 to the writ application.

4. It is submitted that when the technical bid was opened on the scheduled date, the petitioner came to know from the website of the Road Construction Department that its bid was not accepted showing reason “the bank guarantee has been pledged in favour of the Executive Engineer, Road Construction Department, Road Division, Siwan so EMD not valid”. A copy of the reason shown on the website of the RCD has been brought on record as Annexure-3 to the writ application. At this stage, when the petitioner came to know about the reason of non-acceptance of its tender, it was pointed out to the Principal Secretary of the Department and the Executive Engineer vide letter no.13.02.2019 that the bank guarantee issued by the Axis Bank and submitted by the petitioner in the first two pages is clearly addressed to the Executive Engineer, Road Construction Department, Road Division, Purnia, but on the 3rd page due to typographical error instead of ‘Road Division, Purnia’, ‘Road Division, Siwan’ has been printed which is nothing but a typographical error. Copies of the representations dated 13.02.2019 addressed to the aforesaid authorities have been marked as Annexure-4 and 4/A respectively.

5. It is further submitted that on detection of inadvertent error the bank authority had issued an amendment letter dated 13.02.2019 addressed to the Executive Engineer, Road Construction Department, Road Division, Purnia by which amendment has been made by the bank in page 2/Para 2/Line No.8 by which it has been stated that the existing words ‘the Executive Engineer, Road Construction Department, Road Division, Siwan’ is to be read as ‘the Executive Engineer, Road Construction Department, Road Division, Purnia’. However, the other terms and conditions of the original guarantee dated 8.2.2019 remain unchanged. The xerox copy of the amendment letter dated 13.02.2019 issued by the Axis Bank