Record the date of knowledge and the ground

Time decides most tender disputes, so the first task is to fix the exact date and source of knowledge: the e-GP dashboard notice, the evaluation result, a corrigendum or a debriefing. The lawyer then matches the grievance to a ground in rule 72 of the 2025 Rules, such as evaluation outside the stated criteria, specifications only one maker can meet, or irregular opening, and to the tender clause breached.

Some decisions are excluded from the complaint route by section 29(2), including the choice of procurement method and an award approved by the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase.

Where: Lawyer's chamber · Time: Same day to 2 days · Law: s.29(1) and (2) Public Procurement Act 2006; rule 72 Public Procurement Rules 2025 · Documents: Tender document and every corrigendum, e-GP notices with timestamps, Evaluation result or debriefing note

Tip: Monitor the e-GP dashboard daily. The issuance date shown in the system is treated as the date of receipt.

Tier one: complaint to the issuing officer

The complaint goes in writing to the official who issued the tender document, such as the project director or procurement officer, within seven calendar days of becoming aware of the circumstances. It must state the date of knowledge, the rule 72 ground and the corrective action sought. The official must reject the complaint with reasons or take corrective action, and tell the complainant in writing, within five working days. In the Bangladesh Railway ticketing case, a first complaint that did not disclose the date of knowledge was held barred by limitation.

Where: Procuring entity (officer who issued the tender document) · Time: Filing within 7 calendar days; decision within 5 working days · Law: s.30(1) Public Procurement Act 2006; rule 73(1) and (4) and Schedule 2 Public Procurement Rules 2025; Shohoz-Synesis-Vincen JV v CPTU, 16 SCOB [2022] HCD 25 · Documents: Written complaint, Proof of delivery, The document that gave knowledge

Tip: Put the date of knowledge in the first paragraph and attach the document. A date supplied later is treated as an afterthought.

Tier two: complaint to the head of the procuring entity

A dissatisfied complainant lodges the same complaint with the head of the procuring entity. Schedule 2 gives a window of three working days, counted from the fifth working day after the first complaint was filed, not from the date of any reply. If the head of the procuring entity chaired or sat on the evaluation committee, the complaint must be forwarded to the Secretary within three working days; otherwise the head must decide within five working days.

If any tier fails to decide in time, the complainant may go to the next authority within the scheduled period.

Where: Head of the procuring entity (HOPE) · Time: Filing within 3 working days of the window; decision within 5 working days · Law: rule 73(5) and (6) and Schedule 2 Public Procurement Rules 2025 · Documents: Second-tier complaint, Copy of the tier-one complaint and any reply, Proof of delivery

Tip: Calculate every tier's deadline on the day you file tier one, and escalate on time whether or not a reply has arrived.

Tier three: complaint to the Secretary

The third administrative tier is the Secretary of the ministry or division responsible for the procuring entity. The complaint is lodged within three working days counted from the fifth working day after filing at tier two. The Secretary has five working days to decide and must send copies of a reasoned decision to the procuring entity and to the Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority. While a complaint is pending, no notification of award may be issued, although evaluation and approval may continue. Only after this tier is exhausted can the complainant appeal to a Review Panel.

Where: Secretary of the ministry or division · Time: Filing within 3 working days of the window; decision within 5 working days · Law: rule 73(7) to (9) and Schedule 2 Public Procurement Rules 2025; rule 76(2) Public Procurement Rules 2025 · Documents: Third-tier complaint, Earlier complaints and replies, Proof of delivery

Tip: Keep a hard copy with a receiving stamp at every tier. The complaint register is the record the court will look at.

Appeal to the Review Panel

A complainant dissatisfied with the Secretary's decision, or who received none in time, appeals to a Review Panel. The appeal and documents go in a sealed envelope marked confidential, addressed to the panel's chairperson, under a forwarding letter to the Authority's Chief Executive Officer, with the registration fee and refundable security deposit as bank drafts. Once a notification of award has been issued or the contract signed, the tiers close, but an appeal may go directly to the Review Panel where the award is defective.

An appeal without the fee and deposit is not placed before a panel.

Where: Review Panel, Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority · Time: Filing within 3 working days of the window · Law: s.30(2) and (3) Public Procurement Act 2006; rule 73(13) and Schedule 2 Public Procurement Rules 2025 · Documents: Sealed appeal petition, Forwarding letter, Bank drafts for fee and security deposit, Copies of all three tiers of complaint and replies

Tip: Prepare the bank drafts in advance. Under Schedule 2 the fee and deposit run from Tk 10,000 and Tk 50,000 (below Tk 1 crore, or a complaint before tender opening) to Tk 25,000 and Tk 5 lakh (above Tk 10 crore). A missing draft costs the window.

Panel assigned and award suspended

Within three working days of receiving a complete appeal, the Authority selects a panel by rotation and directs the procuring entity not to proceed to contract until the panel decides. Each panel has at least three members drawn from lists of experts in procurement law, technical procurement and contract management, and no serving officer may sit. The suspension does not apply where the head of the procuring entity, with the Secretary's or minister's approval, certifies on recorded grounds that continuing is essential in the public interest; that certificate is final except on judicial review.

Where: Review Panel, Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority · Time: 3 working days · Law: rules 74 and 76(1) and Schedule 2 Public Procurement Rules 2025; s.30(3) Public Procurement Act 2006 · Documents: BPPA letter assigning the panel and suspending the award, Any public interest certificate

Tip: Ask for the recorded grounds of any public interest certificate. A certificate without real grounds is open to challenge by writ.

Review Panel decision

The panel must give a written decision within twelve working days of receiving the appeal. It may reject the appeal, state the governing rules, direct remedial measures, annul a non-compliant act other than one bringing a contract into force, direct compensation and refund of the deposit, or direct that the procurement be completed. Decisions are by majority and final within the procurement. The High Court Division has held that a panel cannot substitute its own evaluation, must decide limitation first, must hear an affected bidder and must sit with three members.

Where: Review Panel, Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority · Time: Within 12 working days · Law: rule 77(2) and Schedule 2 Public Procurement Rules 2025; Softesule Private Limited v Government of Bangladesh, 12 SCOB [2019] HCD 205 · Documents: Written submissions, Review Panel decision

Tip: A winning bidder that learns of an appeal should ask in writing to be heard. Being shut out is a strong ground for a later writ.

Draft the writ petition

If the panel or procuring entity acted unlawfully, the lawyer drafts the tender dispute writ in Bangladesh. The grounds that most often succeed are an improperly constituted panel, a panel substituting its own evaluation or ordering a re-tender beyond its powers, a late complaint entertained without a finding on limitation, a refusal to hear an affected bidder, and an unfounded public interest certificate. The respondents are the procuring entity, its head, the ministry Secretary, the Authority, the panel's chairperson and the rival bidder. Disagreement with technical scoring within the published criteria rarely succeeds.

Where: Lawyer's chamber · Time: 3-7 days · Law: Article 102(2)(a)(ii) Constitution of Bangladesh; Roots Developments Ltd v Chairperson, Review Panel No 2, Writ Petition No 6624 of 2024 (13 August 2025) · Documents: Draft petition and annexures, Complete complaint and appeal record, Review Panel decision, Tender document and e-GP records

Tip: Annex the whole complaint trail. A petition that cannot show each tier was used on time invites summary rejection.

Filing and motion hearing

The petition is verified by affidavit, filed in the writ section and served on the Attorney General's office. At the motion the advocate shows the defect on the face of the record, for example a decision signed by only two panel members. The law officer and the rival bidder may argue that the bidder bypassed the complaint route. A tender dispute writ in Bangladesh filed without using the statutory tiers usually fails, as in the 2021 textbook printing case, where the High Court Division held the petition not maintainable and discharged the Rule.

Where: High Court Division · Time: 1-14 days after filing · Law: Article 102 Constitution of Bangladesh; Priyanka Printing and Publications v Government of Bangladesh, Writ Petition No 6022 of 2021 (9 November 2021) · Documents: Sworn affidavit, Vakalatnama, Board resolution, Receipt of service on the Attorney General's office

Tip: Serve the winning bidder before the motion. A stay obtained without notice to it is quickly challenged.

Rule Nisi and interim stay of award

If persuaded, the bench issues a Rule Nisi and may stay the panel's decision, the notification of award or further proceedings in the tender, or direct the status quo. Because procurement usually serves a development programme, Article 102(4) requires reasonable notice to the Attorney General and a hearing before an interim order that could prejudice development work or the public interest. Interim stays in tender cases are regularly challenged before the Chamber Judge within days, so the petitioner should ask for an early final hearing at the same time.

Where: High Court Division · Time: Same day as the motion · Law: Article 102(2) and 102(4) Constitution of Bangladesh · Documents: Order issuing Rule Nisi with any stay or status quo direction

Tip: Ask for status quo rather than a wide stay where the project is urgent. A narrow order is more likely to survive.

Serve the order on the procuring entity

The lawyer serves certified copies on the procuring entity, its head, the Secretary and the Authority, keeping receiving stamps, and writes asking that no contract be signed or work begun in breach of the order. Where the dispute is about debarment, a 2 September 2025 circular of the Authority requires the contractor to submit the court order to the procuring entity, which updates the e-GP debarment module for approval by its head. If tender validity is about to expire, the bidder should agree to any extension so that it remains in the evaluation.

Where: Procuring entity (officer who issued the tender document) · Time: 1-5 days · Law: Article 112 Constitution of Bangladesh; BPPA circular of 2 September 2025 (e-GP debarment updates) · Documents: Certified copy of the order, Covering letters with receiving stamps, Tender validity extension, if requested

Tip: Refusing a validity extension takes you out of the evaluation. You may win the case and lose the tender.

Affidavit-in-opposition and early hearing

The procuring entity, the Authority and the rival bidder file affidavits-in-opposition explaining the evaluation, the complaint record and any urgency, such as a fuel or medicine supply about to run out. The petitioner replies. Procurement Rules are often heard within weeks or a few months, because the Appellate Division frequently directs the High Court Division to decide within a fixed period when it deals with a stay. The bench may call for the evaluation report and the panel's file.

Where: High Court Division · Time: 2 weeks-6 months · Law: Article 102 Constitution of Bangladesh; Chapter XIA Supreme Court of Bangladesh (High Court Division) Rules 1973 · Documents: Affidavit-in-opposition, Affidavit-in-reply, Evaluation committee report, Review Panel file

Tip: Ask the court to call for the e-GP audit trail where evaluation figures are disputed. The system records each alteration.

Final hearing: Rule absolute or discharged

The bench decides whether the panel or procuring entity acted within the Act and Rules. If the Rule is made absolute, the court declares the decision without lawful authority and may set aside a resulting notification of award. Even a successful tender dispute writ in Bangladesh may not produce a re-tender: in the 2024 Matarbari coal case the court found the panel's direction unsustainable but, given the risk to power supply, left the final decision to the procuring company. If the Rule is discharged, the procurement proceeds.

Where: High Court Division · Time: 1-3 hearing days; judgment same day or within weeks · Law: Article 102(2)(a)(ii) Constitution of Bangladesh; Consortium of Bashundhara Multi-Trading Company Ltd v Government of Bangladesh, Writ Petition No 8664 of 2024 (5 September 2024) · Documents: Judgment, Application for certified copy

Tip: Put evidence on public need, or its absence, before the court early. It shapes the remedy even when the law is clear.

Compliance by the procuring entity

The successful party serves the certified judgment on the procuring entity and the Authority and asks them to act on it within any time fixed by the court: to proceed with the award, re-run the evaluation lawfully, or place the appeal before a properly constituted panel. Article 112 obliges public authorities to act in aid of the Supreme Court. Post-contract disputes about variations, delay or termination are contractual and generally belong to arbitration or the civil courts, not to the writ jurisdiction.

Where: Procuring entity (officer who issued the tender document) · Time: 1-8 weeks · Law: Article 112 Constitution of Bangladesh; Article 108 Constitution of Bangladesh (contempt) · Documents: Certified copy of the judgment, Letter demanding compliance, Proof of delivery

Tip: If the entity ignores the judgment, a contempt petition is available. Keep the receiving stamp.