ASI tender for cafeteria at Humayun Tomb under HC scanner

The Delhi High Court today sought the ASI's response on a plea challenging a condition in its tender for running a cafeteria at Humayun Tomb that the firm undertaking the work must have an annual turnover of Rs 1 crore.
A bench of justices G S Sistani and Vinod Goel issued notice to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and sought its reply to the plea by a person who wishes to participate in the tender process but fears disqualification because of the eligibility criteria.
The petitioner has alleged that the condition for having an annual turnover of Rs 1 crore was included in the tender to benefit a single firm, which alone would qualify.

The petitioner's lawyer, however, did not name the firm which would allegedly benefit from the tender condition.
The lawyer also said that for other monuments like Safdarjung Tomb and Purana Qila, the annual turnover required to qualify is around Rs 15 lakh.
The petitioner, Neeraj Bhatia, has claimed that the Rs 1 crore annual turnover condition is present in the tenders for running cafeterias at Red Fort and Qutab Minar also.
The court was told that a similar plea challenging a tender for cafeteria at Red Fort was coming up for hearing on July 28 and thereafter, the bench listed this petition on the same date.