JUDGMENT :

Rohit Ranjan Agarwal, J.

Heard Sri Anurag Khanna, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Sri Shubham Agarwal and Sri Radhav Dev Garg, learned counsel for the petitioner, Sri Shashi Nandan, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Sri Manish Kumar Nigam, learned counsel for respondent nos. 6 and 7 and Sri Pranjal Mehrotra, learned counsel for respondent nos. 2 to 5.

2. Present petition has been filed by the petitioner for the following reliefs:

"a. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the entire proceedings of opening of financial bids in pursuance of the E-tender Notice dated 09.01.2019.

aa. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the impugned letter dated 09.03.2019 issued by the Respondent no. 4 herein.

b. Issue writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus calling for the records of the technical bids submitted and further reject the technical bid submitted by the Joint Venture comprising of Respondent no. 6 and 7.

c. Issue writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus calling for the records of financial bids submitted and further declare the Petitioner as the successful bidder.

d. Issue writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus restraining the Respondent no. 2 from issuing letter of intent in favour of the Joint Venture (JV) comprising of the Respondent no. 6 and 7."

3. Petitioner is a company incorporated under the provisions of the Companies Act, having its registered office at Mumbai. According to petitioner, it is engaged in the business of manufacture of Prestressed Concrete Pipes, Hume Steel Pipes, Penstock Pipes, R.C.C. Hume Pipes, Prestressed Concrete Sleepers, Bar Wrapped Steel Cylinder Pipes and Prestressed Concrete Cylinder Pipes.

4. It was on 09.01.2019 that an e-tender notice was issued by the office of Superintended Engineer Vth Circle, U.P. Jal Nigam, Jhansi inviting bids on "Turnkey" basis for survey, design, construction, testing, commissioning, trial and run and handing over of work proposed in Jhansi Water Supply Reorganization Scheme (Phase-II) under AMRUT programme. As per the notice technical part of e-bids was to be opened on 07.02.2019, which was postponed to 04.03.2019, as 04.03.2019 was a holiday, the technical bid was revised to be opened on 05.03.2019.

5. According to petitioner, it submitted its bid on 01.03.2019. e-tender notice was accompanied by e-tender document, having all the conditions of eligibility in order to participate in the tender proceedings.

6. Technical bid was opened and the same was uploaded on the website on 05.03.2019 by respondent no. 2, and three technical bids including that of petitioner, as well as of Joint Venture (JV), comprising of respondent nos. 6 and 7 and one more bid was uploaded.

7. It is further stated that petitioner found certain discrepancies in the joint bid of respondent nos. 6 and 7, as such he wrote a letter on 08.03.2019, as well as sent, an e-mail on 09.03.2019 to respondent no.2. The objection of petitioner to the technical bid of respondent nos. 6 and 7 was that documents appended were not in conformity with the conditions prescribed in e-tender document. It is also stated that petitioner received an e-mail from respondent no. 2 on morning of 09.03.2019 that tender of petitioner has been accepted during technical evaluation and financial bid will be opened on 09.03.2019 at 5 p.m.

8. In the evening of 09.03.2019, financial bids of all the three bidders were opened and the Joint Venture, comprising of respondent nos. 6 and 7 was found to be the lowest being 5.55% less than the estimated value, while petitioner's bid was second lowest at 1.92% less than the estimated value, while financial bid of the third bidder that is respondent no. 8 was 9.45% more than the estimated value.

9. Sri Anurag Khanna, learned Senior counsel appearing for the petitioner submitted that entire proceedings and exercise undertaken by respondent no. 2 and its officers are ex-facie illegal and are in clear