New Delhi: A Rs 56.8 crore tender issued by Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) in May for the supply of optical sights to a company run by its former chairman and managing director has brought the defence public sector undertaking under scrutiny over potential conflict-of-interest concerns.
The controversy follows a report by The Indian Express that the Hyderabad-based defence PSU, citing “urgency”, issued a single tender for the optical sights to Aindri Defence Advisory Private Limited, a company set up by former BDL CMD Commodore Siddharth Mishra (Retd) and his wife after his retirement. His wife holds 95 percent stake in the company.
Mishra headed BDL from March 2019 to March 2023. He is currently serving as a member of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
The tender covers the supply of 300 optical sights, with delivery required within seven months of the completion of acceptance and validation tests of five sample units supplied by the company.
Sources in the defence establishment told ThePrint that Aindri has supplied five sample units, all of which have cleared technical inspection by BDL. The financial evaluation of the company’s bid is underway, and no contract has been signed yet, they added.
Sources said due process had been followed in issuing the tender but declined to elaborate on the urgency cited to justify the single-tender route.
The delay in finalising the contract has also raised questions about the urgency cited for the procurement, given that the tender was issued in May and the financial evaluation remains underway.
An open tender allows multiple vendors to compete, potentially helping the procuring organisation secure more competitive prices. In urgent cases, however, procurement rules permit a restricted or single-tender process, subject to the applicable rules and approval requirements.
The circumstances surrounding the procurement, including the justification for urgency and the decision to invite only one company, are therefore key.
Sources explained that there is no general prohibition on former public-sector executives setting up businesses in the same sector after retirement. However, the fact that the company is linked to a former head of the procuring PSU raises questions about safeguards against actual or perceived conflicts of interest.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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