The Delhi High court has scrapped the Central government’s tender for outsourcing passport, visa and consular services at diplomatic missions in four countries, including Australia and Singapore, after two losing bidders argued the selection process wasn’t fair.
The court ordered authorities to seek fresh bids for the contracts in the four jurisdictions, which also cover the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, finding officials failed to adequately explain how bids were evaluated and why some applicants were disqualified.
The high court allowed VFS Global to continue providing services until a fresh tender is completed and a new contract is awarded. However, the website of the Ministry of External Affairs shows that the existing contracts for Australia, Kuwait and the UAE expired on June 30, while Singapore’s is due to expire on September 30.
VFS Global suspends ops
VFS Global has already suspended new passport and visa applications in Australia from July 1, citing instructions from the High Commission of India in Canberra, according to its website. The company declined to comment, citing the ongoing legal proceedings.
The Central government has appealed the ruling and the Solicitor General made an urgent mention before the Supreme Court on Friday. The Solicitor General submitted before the apex court that while the high court allowed existing providers to continue operating temporarily, they had stopped services from July 1 and were unlikely to return without a contract.
Passport and visa services in three countries are virtually at a standstill, the second-highest law officer added.
The dispute affects a system that processes millions of passport, visa and consular applications each year for Indian citizens abroad and foreign nationals traveling to India. It highlights the critical importance of the procurement process that underpins overseas diplomatic services.
The legal case was brought by two unsuccessful bidders, E Trav Tech and Verasys, challenging the procurement process. They argued that they had been unfairly excluded during the technical evaluation.
The government contended that the courts shouldn’t interfere in decisions made by an expert committee overseeing the tender.
Rejecting that argument, the high court said the failure of authorities to record and communicate valid reasons for the technical evaluation of the bids in question strikes “at the heart of transparency, fairness and equality in public procurement.” The tender process was rendered “opaque” and “arbitrary,” it said and deserved to be set aside.
Applicants ‘powerless’
Sachin Savadgan, a data analyst in Sydney, said he felt “totally powerless” after his passport renewal application, lodged in May, became caught up in the temporary suspension.
Unable to obtain updates despite contacting the Indian High Commission, VFS and consular officials, Savadgan said he felt “stuck” with no alternative options while trying to travel overseas for a family emergency.
Sumit Gupta received a permanent residency invitation in Australia that required Indian police clearance via the consular office. Unwilling to risk the 60-day expiration for the invite, Sumit chose the more expensive option, flying to India to get his clearance within eight business days.
Gupta said many others remain “immensely tense” because “the process is still stuck” and he expects to see more people take the same approach over coming weeks.
