In Brief
Caretel Infotech submitted a tender for HPCL's call centre services. A show cause notice for blacklisting was issued to Caretel after the tender was floated but before the bid was submitted. Caretel submitted its bid with a declaration that it had not been blacklisted. Caretel was declared L-1 but a blacklisting order against it was later passed. A competing bidder challenged the contract award in the High Court, which allowed the petition, finding non-disclosure of the show cause notice breached the undertaking. The Supreme Court held that a show cause notice is only a preliminary stage and does not amount to initiated blacklisting within the tender clause; specific disclosure formats limit what must be disclosed; and courts should not re-examine tender decisions in writ proceedings absent arbitrariness. The Court set aside the High Court order and allowed the appeal.
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