M/S Deepak And Co v. Indian Railway Catering And Tourism Corporation Limited

$~62 *

IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

+ W.P.(C) 4092/2026 with CM APPL. 20063/2026 and CM APPL. 20064/2026 M/S DEEPAK AND CO .....Petitioner Through:

Mr. Kirti Uppal, Senior Advocate with Mr.

Himanshu Pathak, Ms. Archisha Satyarthi, Ms. Asmita Shukla and Mr.

Mohit Gupta, Advocates versus INDIAN RAILWAY CATERING AND TOURISM CORPORATION LIMITED .....Respondent Through:

Mr. Saurav Agrawal, Mr. Anshuman Chowdhury, Ms.

Kiran Devrani, Mr. Sumeet Singh and Ms. Samayra Adlakha, Advocates

CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE AMIT BANSAL

O R D E R

% 30.03.2026 1.

The present writ petition has been filed seeking direction to respondent/ Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation ('IRCTC') to extend the tenure of the petitioner's contract in respect of Train No. 2097778 (AII-CDG Vande Bharat Express) on parity with similarly placed contractors.

2.

The petitioner vide communication dated 12th January, 2026 was awarded a temporary license for providing on-board catering services in the aforesaid train on a nomination basis for a period of one (1) month or takeover of services by a licensee, whichever is earlier, purely on ad hoc W.P.(C) 4092/2026 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 01/04/2026 at 15:40:40

basis. Relevant extract from the said communication is set out below: 3.

Pursuant to the aforesaid communication, the petitioner started its services on 1st March, 2026 and which are to expire on 30th March, 2026 i.e. today.

4.

Mr. Kirti Uppal, Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of petitioner submits that the respondent/ IRCTC had initiated a tender process for the aforesaid train on 28th March, 2026, after a copy of the present writ petition was served on the respondent/ IRCTC and the said tender is to be closed today.

5.

In the opinion of the Court, the time given for the tender is very short. 6.

Having heard the counsel for the parties, it is directed that the tender be kept open for two (2) days from today i.e. till 12:00 hours of 1st April, 2026 so that the petitioner as well as other prospective bidders get an opportunity to submit their bids.

7.

In view of the direction passed above, the writ petition along with pending applications stands disposed of.

8.

The grievance of the petitioner that even on nomination basis the respondent/ IRCTC awards contracts for a period of six (6) months, is kept open.

9.

The order be given Dasti under signatures of the Court Master. AMIT BANSAL, J MARCH 30, 2026/ds W.P.(C) 4092/2026 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 01/04/2026 at 15:40:40