‘Clarify stand on blacklisted contractors’

The Bombay high court on Wednesday asked the BMC to clarify if it would take back different contracts awarded to two different blacklisted contractors or not.

The division bench of Justice Bhushan R. Gavai and Justice Shalini Phansalkar-Joshi was hearing a public interest litigation filed by Jayshree Khadilkar-Pande seeking court directions to the BMC to take back contracts awarded to five blacklisted contractors awarded to them in different parts of the city.

Petitioner’s lawyer Vijay Hiremat argued before the court that it is public money which is used by the municipal corporation to construct or repair bridges or roads and if some contractors have already been blacklisted by the BMC commissioner for not working properly then why did the standing committee agree to award contracts to the same contractors again.

“Don’t you (BMC) have other contractors who can complete the job, why were contracts awarded to blacklisted contractors ” asked the bench.