The Government is free to settle a forest coupe on the Corporation despite an auction sale having taken place and the highest bid is obtained, until the highest bid is finally accepted.

Judgement

G. K. MISRA, C.J. :- The averments in the writ application may be stated in short. The petitioner is a forest contractor in respect of lot No. 291 of the Baripada Forest Division. There was a public auction on 28-8-73. The upset price was fixed at Rs. 73,000. The petitioner with five others participated in the public auction. The petitioner was the highest bidder for an amount of Rs. 80,500. The sale was finally knocked at that amount. After the acceptance of the highest bid of the petitioner he was directed by the Divisional Forest Officer (opposite party No. 3) to sign the bid-sheet. The D.F.O. also signed the bid-sheet in token of his acceptance of the bid. Immediately after the bid-sheet was signed the petitioner deposited Rs. 8,050 which was 10 per cent of the bid amount. The security deposit was in the form of Government Promissory Notes and National Defence Certificates. The agreement was signed by the petitioner and the D.F.O. The period of lease was nine working months starting from October, 1973 and the petitioner was all along waiting for the direction of the Divisional Forest Officer to work out the coupe. The petitioner made an investment of more than Rs. 11,000 to be ready for working out the coupe the moment the order was received. He ultimately gathered that in respect of the impugned lot the Government entered into a negotiation with the Orissa Forest Corporation and granted the same in its favour. He accordingly prayed for issue of a writ of mandamus directing the Government to lease out the impugned lot in his favour after cancelling the lease in favour of the Orissa Forest Corporation and to issue a writ of certiorari to quash the order of the State Government in that respect. Facts are not very much in dispute in the counter filed by the opposite parties. It is, however, asserted that there was no acceptance of the highest bid given by the petitioner which was merely an offer. The competent authority to accept the offer is the Chief Conservator of Forests. Reliance for the purpose was placed on Clause 1 of the General Condition of Sale under which the lot was put to auction. It may be extracted:

"(1) The right to take contract for exploiting forest produce in the lots advertised for sale in Part I of the sale notice will be granted to the bidder whose bid is conditionally accepted by the D.F.O. subject to the approval of the competent authority and the latter authority so approves it. No sale shall be binding on the Government until such approval has been obtained and communicated to the bidder and the formal agreement is executed on behalf of the Government. No bidder shall be eligible to rescind the contract between the date of bidding and the date of approval of the competent authority." The D.F.O. who conducted the auction had no authority to accept the offer. His financial power to accept any contract is up to Rs. 20,000 only. In this case the acceptance of the bid by the D.F.O. is subject to acceptance and ratification by the competent authority who is the Chief Conservator of Forests, the amount being above Rs. 50,000 and less than one lakh. Moreover, in accordance with Article 299 of the Constitution no rights can accrue to the petitioner unless a formal agreement is executed by the Chief Conservator of Forests. In regard to the coupe in question, the State Government had taken a decision as early as in July 1973 that it would be allotted to the Forest Corporation from the year 1973-74. As a matter of routine, however, notice was given for sale of the impugned forest coupe. As the coupe was to be allotted to the Forest Corporation, the offer of the petitioner at the auction sale was not accepted. Such a decision had been taken in a meeting held on 9-7-73, the proceeding of which is to be found in Annexure A. By an order (Annexure B) dated 18-12-73 the Orissa Forest Corporation Ltd. was directed to work out the coupe. In the circumstances the writ application is liable to be dismissed.

2. Mr.