In Brief
Mihan India Ltd (MIL), a joint venture of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and Maharashtra government, conducted a competitive bidding process for a public-private partnership at Nagpur Airport. GMR Airports Limited (GAL) won with a 14.49% revenue share offer and received a Letter of Award on 07.03.2019, which it accepted. The government later sought to annul the bidding process on grounds of financial non-viability. The Supreme Court held that once a Letter of Award is issued and acknowledged in a fair, transparent bidding process, it creates a binding relationship and the bidding authority cannot arbitrarily reject it. Such rejection violates Article 14 of the Constitution and is properly subject to judicial review under writ jurisdiction. The appeals were dismissed, upholding the High Court's decision to enforce the Award.
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