These four appeals preferred under clause 15 of the Letters Patent against the common judgment of Subba Rao, J., disposing of four applications under Article 226 of the Constitution of India involve the same point and may be disposed of together. It will be convenient to refer to the facts in one of the applications, namely, W.P. No. 568 of 1953. The facts in the other applications are substantially identical.

The petitioners in W.P. No. 568 of 1953, namely, the Indian Tobacco Corporation, are a partnership firm carrying on business at Madras. In June, 1951, the Madras Government called for tenders for the distribution (by sale) of ammonium sulphate and superphosphate fertilisers in the State of Madras for three years from July, 1951 to end of June, 1954, from firms of repute and standing having depots and branches in such of the districts of the Madras State in which they desired to take up distribution. The petitioners were one of the firms which sent tenders. The Government accepted the tender made by the petitioners as well as the tenders by 13 other firms for distribution of the fertilisers throughout the Presidency. The petitioners were allotted the districts