Surajpura Block
Delhi HC upholds selecting Sunflag Iron as preferred bidder for phosphorite block
This story was originally published at 16:54 IST on 16 December 2025
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NEW DELHI – The Delhi High Court on Tuesday upheld the decision of the Ministry of Mines to declare Sunflag Iron and Steel Co. Ltd. as the preferred bidder for the grant of a composite license for phosphorite mineral in respect of Surajpura Phosphorite Block in Madhya Pradesh. The court rejected Anandnam Minerals Pvt. Ltd.'s plea to resume bidding for the mineral block from the point where a technical error had allegedly occurred.
The Ministry of Mines had issued a notice inviting tenders in January to grant a composite license for the mineral block through an e-auction in which Anandnam Minerals was declared a technically qualified bidder. However, during the second round of the electronic auction, Anandnam Minerals' screen went black, preventing it from submitting its bid within the specified time.
In May, the Ministry of Mines declared Sunflag Iron and Steel the preferred bidder, and Anandnam Minerals moved the high court against the decision. The Ministry of Mines said that none of the other bidders had reported any technical glitches, and therefore, the petition lacks merit and should not be entertained.
In their September report, a court-appointed committee of experts concluded that Anandnam Minerals failed to prove that the server of Metal Scrap Trade Corp., which conducted the auction, was at fault. "... we have no option but to go by what the experts have reported and in the absence of any glitch attributable to the server of the respondent No.2 – MSTC (Metal Scrap Trade Corp.), we are unable to find any force in the submissions made by the learned senior counsel for the petitioner," the court said.
Tuesday, shares of Sunflag Iron and Steel ended 0.2% lower at INR 257.25 on the National Stock Exchange. End
Reported by Surya Tripathi
Edited by Saji George Titus
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