Anil Ambani's airport dream crashes

Delhi High Court rejects Reliance petition against airport bids

BY A CORRESPONDENT
April 22, 2006
The Delhi High Court has poured cold water on Anil Ambani's effort to get the airport modernisation awards blocked. The court on Friday rejected the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group's (ADAG) petition contesting the airport bid process.

Reliance has not made any comment in this regard, though it is believed that the company may approach the Supreme Court. As per the airport modernisation awards given on January 31, GVK-South African airports won the bid to modernize the Mumbai airport, while the Delhi airport went to GMR-Fraport. Reliance had moved court against this award.

According to the division bench of T S Thakur and B N Chaturvedi, the government acted in a transparent manner while awarding the contracts. According to Reliance counsel Mukul Rohtagi, the government had committed a breach of contract, since Reliance was the highest bidder for the Delhi airport and the best-technologically equipped for Mumbai airport.

Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium, who appeared for the government argued that the bids were awarded in the larger pubic interest, since both airports had to be modernised before the Commonwealth Games in 2010.

The bench rejected the charge that the award was "discriminatory, illogical or illegal". According to the court, the government and the AAI had "absolute discretion to vary the tender requirements or amend the term of RFP (request for proposal)"