Court Further Dismisses Lawsuit Related to Orange Line Expansion

BANGKOK (NNT) - The Supreme Administrative Court has upheld a decision by a lower court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Bangkok Mass Transit System Plc (BTSC) against the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA) and its bidding committee in connection with losses sustained during the western extension of the Orange Line.

The lawsuit arose from MRTA’s revision of the terms of reference (ToR) for bidding on the extension from Bang Khun Non to Min Buri, despite the fact that bid envelopes had already been sent to potential bidders. The bid was later canceled after the BTSC protested against the revision, which led to lawsuits related to changes in the Orange Line’s bidding criteria.

While the Central Administrative Court ruled that the changes made to the ToR were unlawful, it did not find them to have caused any damage to the BTSC. The court viewed the expenses incurred by the BTSC as regular business expenses and therefore dismissed the lawsuit. The court also found that the MRTA and its bidding committee had not revised the ToR with discrimination against the plaintiff, but had acted according to the law.

Meanwhile, two other lawsuits are still pending. One case involves the MRTA’s cancellation of the bidding process and has been filed with the Administrative Court. The other case has been filed with the Supreme Administrative Court by Move Forward Party list MP Surachet Pravinvongvuth, who is also the chairman of the House sub-committee studying large-scale infrastructure projects. This lawsuit alleges irregularities in the Orange Line bidding process and targets the Transport Minister and three defendants.

Source: https://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news/detail/TCATG230302144012568