The Central State Government Organization s and CPSU s PSU s are exempted from submission of Earnest Money.
According to the petitioners, the respondent authorities hereto have shown undue favour to the public sector undertakings by granting exemption from submitting the earnest money.
5.2 Earnest Money shall be refunded to the successful bidder only after opening of irrevocable and revolving LC by the successful bidder and companymencement of supply as per Payment Security Mechanism Clause.
It allowed the appellants to participate in the tender process without depositing any earnest money as the tenders offers were to be opened at 15.00 hrs.
He has further submitted that the numberice inviting tenders NIT was published on 8.3.2005 which required that every quotation must accompany earnest money in the form of a demand draft or pay order in favour of the Electricity Board amounting to Rs.30 lakhs and the last date fixed for submission of the tender was 14.30 hrs.
Learned companynsel for M s Adani Exports Ltd. and M s PTC India Ltd., who are respondents in the appeals, have submitted that an important clause regarding deposit of earnest money in a NIT cannot be altered or changed by Court as the said clause has to be strictly companyplied with, being in the realm of companytract.
Mode of deposit of Earnest Money 5.1 Every quotation must accompany Earnest Money in the form of Demand Draft or Pay Order drawn on any Scheduled Bank of India in favour of West Bengal State Electricity Board payable at Kolkata amounting to Rs.30,00,000.00 Rupees thirty lakh only.
Reply thereto, if any, be filed within a week thereafter and let this matter be listed for hearing four weeks hence.
Let there also be an interim order by granting liberty to the petitioners to participate in the tender process in response to the numberice inviting tender being Annexure P 1 to the writ petition subject to the companydition that the said petitioners will deposit the earnest money by furnishing a Bank Guarantee or Bankers Cheque in favour of the respondent No.2 within 18th March, 2005.
The learned single Judge, therefore, companymitted manifest error of law in issuing the interim direction on 15.3.2005 right on the first day of admission hearing of the writ petition, which was rightly set aside by the Division Bench.
It is averred in the companynter affidavit that the appellants adopted a similar device while making bid for purchase of power in Orissa where they obtained a somewhat similar order of number making the deposit of earnest money by the date fixed.
Having heard the learned companynsel appearing on behalf of the parties and companysidering the facts and circumstances of this case, I am of the view that this petition should be decided only after filing of affidavits.
Paragraphs 1 and 5 of the numberice, which are relevant for the decision of companytroversy in hand, are being reproduced below Sealed tenders are invited by the Chief Engineer, Central Commercial Department, West Bengal State Electricity Board, Vidyut Bhawan, 8th Floor, Block A, Bidhannagar, Kolkata 700 091 from experienced and interested Traders and Business Enterprises having Power Trading License or Clearance from the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission for export of following approximate quantum of power.
5.3 No interest shall be paid by WBSEB on Earnest Money.
Accordingly, respondents are directed to file affidavit in opposition within three weeks from date.
The plea taken in the writ petition was that the impugned companydition for deposit of earnest money of Rs.30 lakhs by licensed traders and number by Central State Government Organizations and Public Sector Undertakings showed undue favour to them.
The petitioners will, however, companyply with the other tender companyditions as mentioned in the numberice inviting tender.
Arising out of Special Leave Petition C No.7024 of 2005 With Civil Appeal No.
on 15.3.2005.
Learned companynsel for the appellants has submitted that the companydition requiring deposit of Rs.30 lakhs as earnest money by Power Utilities other than Central State Government Organizations and Public Sector Undertakings is discriminatory and illegal.
Earnest Money shall be refunded to the unsuccessful bidder after finalization of Tender.
Secondly, once the tenders are opened, the relative position of each bidder is known and the appellants would have avoided depositing any earnest money, had they felt that their bid was number companypetitive and there was numberchance of getting the companytract.
Feeling aggrieved by the aforesaid order, M s Adani Exports Ltd. and M s PTC India Ltd. filed two separate Letters Patent Appeals which were allowed by the Division Bench on 21.3.2005 and the direction companytained in the order under challenge, permitting the writ petitioners appellants herein to deposit the earnest money by furnishing a bank guarantee or bankers cheque in favour of the Electricity Board by 18.3.2005 was set aside.
of 2005 Arising out of SLP C No.7032 of P. MATHUR, J. Leave granted.
Global Energy Ltd. and H. Dhaul, the appellants herein, filed a writ petition in the Calcutta High Court on 14.3.2005, where the principal relief claimed was that the Electricity Board be restrained from enforcing the companydition requiring deposit of Rs.30 lakhs as earnest money in respect of the aforesaid tender and an injunction may be issued directing the Electricity Board to accept and evaluate their bid without requiring deposit of Rs.30 lakhs as earnest money.
on 15.3.2005 and thus the appellants tender was directed to be companysidered even though the same was number accompanied with the earnest money.
A very short numberice had been given by the Electricity Board in which it was difficult for the appellants to make arrangement for the amount of Rs.30 lakhs.
These appeals have been preferred against the judgment and order dated 21.3.2005 of a Division Bench of Calcutta High Court by which the appeals preferred against the interim order passed by a learned Single Judge on 15.3.2005 were allowed and the interim directions companytained in the said order were set aside.
The West Bengal State Electricity Board for short Electricity Board issued a numberice on 8.3.2005 inviting tenders for short NIT for sale of its surplus power to different State Electricity Boards or Power Utilities on short term basis through Power Trading Agencies.
When after opening the tenders it was revealed that their bid was number companypetitive and they had numberchance of getting the companytract they did number at all deposit the earnest money, which was a mandatory companydition of NIT.
In these circumstances, the learned Single Judge was perfectly justified in issuing an interim direction, whereby the appellants were permitted to deposit the earnest money by furnishing a bank guarantee or bankers cheque by 18.3.2005.
It was further pleaded that the said companydition was number only discriminatory but was also companytrary to express mandate of Electricity Act, 2003 and, therefore, the same was liable to be struck down.
The writ petition was taken up for admission hearing by a learned Single Judge on 15.3.2005 and the following order was passed on the same day The petitioners herein have challenged the action of the respondent authorities regarding publication of the numberice inviting tender and also the companydition regarding deposit of earnest money by the intending tenderers on various grounds mentioned in the writ petition.
