APHC010712222025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI [3327]

(Special Original Jurisdiction)

TUESDAY,THE THIRD DAY OF MARCH TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY SIX PRESENT THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE K SREENIVASA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO: 36493/2025 Between:

Progressive Engineering Enterprises ...PETITIONER AND Union Of India and Others ...RESPONDENT(S)

Counsel for the Petitioner: 1. BUTTA VIJAYA BHASKER Counsel for the Respondent(S):

1. Y V ANIL KUMAR (Central Government Counsel)

The Court made the following:

THE HON‟BLE SRI JUSTICE K.SREENIVASA REDDY WRIT PETITION No.36493 of 2025 ORDER :

The present Writ Petition was filed, originally, seeking a direction to the respondents to consider petitioner‟s technical bid submitted pursuant to Tender No.STCKRPU- V-G_D-GOT116, dated 7.11.2025 issued by 3^rd respondent, without reference to the petitioner‟s bank guarantee for a period of 180 days validity from 20.11.2025 to 19.5.2026, instead of 01.12.2025 to 31.05.2026.

2. Case of the writ petitioner is as follows:

(a) Respondent No.3 issued the subject Tender dated

07.11.2025 for the work viz. Supply, Installation, Design & Commissioning of New Electronic Interlocking (Hot- standby) with Distributed Architecture at Gate Junction (GJC) station, Duvvada (DVD) and Gopalapatnam (GPT) station, and Supply, Installation, Design and Commissioning of Alteration in existing Electronic Interlocking (Distributed) of M/s.Kyosan at Vadlapudi (VDPD) station in connection with 3^rd and 4^th line between VDPD-GJC and DVD-GPT sections, and provision of automatic block working between VDPD-GJC & DVD-GPT section including Utility shifting of infringing LC Gate, Cables, Location boxes, other Signalling & Tele- communication gears, in Waltair Division of East Coast Railway.

(b) The participants in the tender process are required to submit a technical bid along with a financial bid. Technical bids would be opened first, and the participants, who qualify in the technical bid, will be shortlisted for the financial bid stage. Thereafter, financial bids of the shortlisted participants are opened and the bidders are sorted in ascending order, with the lowest bidders being L1, the second lowest bidder being declared as L2, and so on.

(c) Pursuant to the aforesaid Tender Notification, the petitioner submitted its technical bid on 01.12.2025 through online. The petitioner submitted bid security of Rs.33,17,000/- with Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, Jayanagar, Bangalore vide B.G.No.0421IGP251118430, dated 20.11.2025. As per the terms of the Tender, the Bank Guarantee (B.G.) bond shall be valid for a period of 90 days beyond the bid valid period. But, instead of mentioning the effective date in the B.G. submitted by the petitioner as „from 01.12.2025‟, it is mentioned as 20.11.2025, and the mistake is human error and not intentional. In view of the said mistake, the validity of B.G. would fall short of 10 days i.e. instead of 01.12.2025 to 31.5.2026, it was mentioned as 20.11.2025 to 19.5.2026. The said mistake does not substantially affect the conditions of tender document nor does it cause any hardship or prejudice to the respondents.

(d) It is stated that there is no deficiency in the amount mentioned in the B.G. and the petitioner fulfilled all other conditions required for submission of the technical bid, and the short fall of 10 days in validity period of 180 days from 01.12.2025 would not affect or cause any prejudice to the terms of the Tender. The petitioner apprehends that the respondents are likely to reject the petitioner‟s technical bid on the said ground, in which event, it would result in great hardship to the petitioner. It is stated that the Central Vigilance Commission Guidelines make it clear that unless a bidder is blacklisted or prematurely terminated because of poor performance, his bids cannot be rejected on any other grounds. Hence, the Writ Petition.

3. On 30.12.2025, when the Writ Petition came up for admission, it was posted to 02.01.2026 for getting instructi