WP(MD)/27400/2019 of EXCEL ENGINEERING ENTERPRISES Vs THE SUPERINTENDING ENGINEER on 30 December 2019

Relief

ORDER

The petitioner has filed this writ petition to quash thetender notice issued by the respondent in Bid Invitation No: 07[SE] /TBC/2019-2010, dated 27.11.2019 and to direct the respondent toissue fresh tender notification by following due process of law.

2. According to the petitioner, as per the letter issued bythe Superintending Engineer, PWD – WRD, Vellore, dated 04.05.2018,he is a registered Class- I State Level contractor and the period oflicence was extended for the year 2018- 2019 throughout the State ofTamil Nadu. The petitioner Company has also executed severalcontract works for PWD and other Departments successfully. Thus, thepetitioner company has got the pre-qualification to participate inthe present tender notice issued.

3. The learned counsel for petitioner would submit that theimpugned tender notice was issued on 27.11.2019. As per thecondition of the tender, the petitioner Company has to apply for thetender within 30 days. According to the learned counsel for thepetitioner, the tender notification was published in a vernacularnews paper viz., Dhina Thanthi, on 28.11.2019. This noticehttps://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/hcservices/

categorically states that the Bid documents will be available inwebsite http://www.tenders.tn.gov.in from 04.12.2019 to 02.01.2020and final date of submission of bid documents is 03.01.2020.

4. Now, the main grievance of the petitioner is that from thedate of paper publication i.e., 28.11.2019 to till date i.e., thedate of filing of this writ petition (27.12.2019), in the above saidwebsite, the bid documents have not been uploaded in the above webportal and only the tender notice is available. According to him,this is a gross violation of Rule 16(1) of the Tamil NaduTransparency in Tender Rules, 2000.

5. The learned counsel for the petitioner would further submitthat each and every tender notification must mandatorily comply withthe provisions of the Rules specified in the Tamil Nadu Transparencyin Tender Rules, 2000, which reads as follows:

“20.Minimum time for submission of tenders:

(1) The Tender Inviting Authority shall ensure thatadequate time is provided for the submission of tenders anda minimum time is allowed between date of publication of theNotice Inviting Tenders in the relevant Tender Bulletin orin the newspapers whichever is later and the last date forsubmission of tenders. This minimum period shall be asfollows:

(a) for tenders upto rupees two crores in value,fifteen days; and (b) for tenders in excess of rupees twocrores in value, thirty days.”

6. The learned counsel for the petitioner would also submitthat since only the tender notification is available in the websiteand the required documents have not been uploaded by the concernedauthority, the petitioner was not in a position to upload thetender. Hence, he request this Court either to quash the impugnedtender notification or to extend the time for submission of filledin tenders.

7. The learned Special Government Pleader appearing for therespondent would submit that though the tender notification isavailable in the website from 04.12.2019 itself, all the requireddocuments were uploaded in the website from 24.12.2019. Therefore,till now, the Bid time is available upto 02.01.2020 and thepetitioner can very well apply today itself.

8. Heard the learned counsel on either side and perused thedocuments carefully.

9. The contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner ishttps://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/hcservices/

that as per the notification in Dhina Thanthi, dated 28.11.2019, thetender notification has been available in the websitehttp://www.tenders.tn.gov.in . Then the parties are expected toparticipate in the tender applying from 04.12.2019 to 02.01.2020.The next contention raised by the learned counsel for the petitioneris that the required documents were not uploaded in the website till26.12.2019. Hence, the petitioner was not in a position to accessall the required documents till 26.12.2019 and he was in a positionto access only those documents through website only from 27.12.2019.Therefore, he required further time to make a field work and also toapply.

10. This contention of the learned counsel for the petitioneris not acceptable, since the petitioner is not a new one to thisfield and he is already a schedule No.1 contractor in the departmentand he knows all the documents also. In the affidavit filed insupport of this writ petition, it is stated that even till date, i.edate of filing of the present writ petition, the petitioner was notin a position to access the required documents. This fact is notcorrect because of the admission now made by the learned counsel forthe petitioner that from 26.12.2019 onwards, the petitioner was onlyable to access all the documents. Therefore, in thesecircumstances, this Court is of the view that the last date ofsubmission of tender is still available till 02.01.2020 and thepetitioner can very well apply today itself.

11. Considering the above facts and circumstances of the case,this Court is of the view that there is no merit in this WritPetition. Hence, this Writ Petition cannot be entertained.Accordingly, this Writ Petition is dismissed. No costs.Consequently, connected miscellaneous petition is also dismissed.

Sd/-Assistant Registrar(CS I)

To

The Superintending Engineer,PWD, WRD,Tamiraparani Basin Circle,Tirunelveli – 627 002.

+2 CC to M/s.M.SATHISKUMAR, Advocate ( SR-106531[F] dated 30/12/2019

)

KK/SAR/30.12.2019/4P-5C/

Writ Petition (MD)No.27400 of 2019

AND

W.M.P(MD)No. 23662 of 210930.12.2019