SC closes govt petition against GMR operation of Nagpur International Airport

The Supreme Court on Friday closed a curative petition filed by the Union government and the Airports Authority of India (AAI), seeking a review of its 2022 judgment allowing the GMR Group to manage and operate the airport international Babasaheb Ambedkar from Nagpur.

Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, acting in his capacity as a judicial officer, informed a four-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud that there was no valid reason to pursue the petition . He said that after an “impartial” review of the case, as requested by the court, he found no basis under curative jurisdiction to challenge the decision.

“There was earlier a view that the ground of bias could be invoked, but I am clear that such a ground can never be invoked against an order of this court,” Mehta clarified. He also stressed that he had not consulted the government on this matter, his duty being to provide an independent opinion to the court.

The bench, also comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna, Bhushan R Gavai and JK Maheshwari, recognized Mehta’s professional standing and concluded the proceedings, noting that the curative petition did not meet the strict criteria required for such cases, including bias , the absence of a hearing or any other criterion. similar reasons.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appeared for GMR Airports.

The initial dispute dates back to May 2022, when the Supreme Court upheld a Bombay High Court ruling that favored GMR airports in a long-running legal battle. MIHAN India Ltd (Multi-Modal International Cargo Hub and Airport at Nagpur), a joint venture to manage the Nagpur airport project, had sought to cancel a contract awarded to GMR in 2019 for the modernization and operation of the ‘airport. MIHAN argued that the tender acceptance letter sent to GMR in March 2019 did not constitute a formal award of the contract, but the High Court rejected this contention, calling the cancellation of the contract unjustified.

The Supreme Court, in its 2022 judgment, agreed with the view of the Bombay High Court, holding that contracts awarded by the government must follow the principles of fairness and equality, and upheld the decision to restore the GMR contract.

In its 2022 ruling, the Supreme Court bench, then comprising Justices Vineet Saran (since retired) and JK Maheshwari, observed that the High Court’s order was based on sound legal reasoning and analysis. “We are of the view that the findings recorded by the High Court allowing the writ petition are in accordance with law. These conclusions do not suffer from any illegality, justifying interference on the part of this court in the exercise of the power provided for in Article 136 of the Indian Constitution,” the bench ruled.

The May 9, 2022 judgment emphasized that contracts awarded by government agencies must be anchored in the principles of fairness, equality and the rule of law. It rejected MIHAN’s argument that acceptance of GMR’s offer was conditional on approval from the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation, thereby quashing the attempt at cancellation.

Concluding Friday’s proceedings, the bench noted the fairness of Mehta’s impartial view and noted that the Center and the AAI had chosen not to press the petition due to the absence of grounds to invoke curative skill. However, the bench clarified that a specific observation in its 2022 ruling, that the Center or the AAI were not necessarily parties in such cases, would not serve as a precedent in future cases. This clarification ensures that the parties involved will not necessarily be bound by the same conclusion in subsequent cases of a similar nature.