Having lost in the race for modernisation of Delhi Airport despite emerging as the top financial bidder, Anil Ambani's Reliance Airport Developer on Thursday moved the Delhi high court seeking cancellation of entire bidding process terming as 'illegal and arbitrary' the decision to award the contract to GMR Fraport.
Immediately after moving the court, a spokesperson for the company said, "We have filed a petition in the Delhi high court seeking fairness and transparency in the awards of the contracts of both airports."
Asserting that the Company had emerged as one of the two highest technically qualified bidder for the two airports, he said Reliance had also emerged as the highest financial bidder for the Delhi airport.
The move follows the decision of Empowered Group of Ministers on Tuesday to give GMR-Fraport a choice between the two airports provided they matched the top financial bid on the ground that the combine was the sole technically qualified bidder scoring over 80 marks.
Reliance, however, was downgraded below 80 per cent mark after the EGoM had asked a technical expert committee headed by Metro chief E Sreedharan for a review.
Apprehending such legal tangle, GMR and Airport Authorities of India had earlier filed caveats in Supreme Court to ensure that there was no ex-parte on petition filed in connection with the modernisation of the two airports at a cost of Rs 5,400 crore (Rs 54 billion).
Reliance's move comes a day after it wrote to each member of EGoM to register its protest.
In its petition filed through their counsel Manali and Mahesh Agarwal, the company sought cancellation of the entire bidding process stating that the decision of the authorities to grant the right to GMR-Fraport was 'arbitrary and illegal' and made Airport Authority of India, Union government and GMR consortium as respondents.
Immediately after the financial bids were opened on Tuesday, Reliance spokesperson had termed the deviations, which it said was informed barely two hours before telephonically, as 'untenable.'
After opening up of the financial bids, GMR-Fraport had agreed the match the Reliance's bid of 45.99 per cent revenue share to the government for the Delhi airport upping its original bid of 43.64 per cent to get the contract, which was later ratified by the Union Cabinet on Wednesday.
On Wednesday evening the company had protested to EGOM against the manner in which they were informed at the last minute of the changes in Request for Proposal (RFP) or tender conditions.
Reliance, which at the beginning had scored over 80 per cent on technical parameters along with GMR for the two airports, was disqualified after Sreedharan Committee brought down its marks to about 76 per cent.
Following this, the EGoM had decided to broad base the competition by allowing the top four bidders for each airport on technical qualification and open their bids.
GMR-Fraport, which had emerged as number two financial bidders for Mumbai also, chose Delhi and, therefore, the Mumbai airport contract was awarded to GVK consortium that had bid 38.7 per cent revenue share to the government.