In Brief
A municipal corporation in Kanpur invited bids for 17,000 square metres of public land with a reserve price of Rs. 15.47 crores. E-City Entertainment offered the highest bid of Rs. 21.51 crores, but the corporation rejected it, believing the price was below market value, and cancelled the auction. The bidder filed writ petitions, and conflicting High Court orders followed. The Supreme Court upheld the corporation's right to reject bids if unsatisfied with the price offered, even when above the reserve price. The Court found the High Court's orders cryptic and inadequately reasoned. However, the Supreme Court ordered refund of the deposited earnest money with 8% annual interest within two months.
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