S.B.SINHA, J. - (1.) SHREE Baidyanath Ayurved Bhawan Pvt. Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as 'the company' for the sake of brevity) is a company registered and incorporated underthe Indian Companies Act, 1956. It manufactures Ayurvedic medicines. Forthe purpose of distribution of its products, it engages Carrying and Forwarding Agents to receive goods from it, store them and sell them to stockiests.
(2.) THE company appointed M/s. S. Bhatia Enterprises, Ludhiana (Respondent No.5 herein) (for short, 'the firm') of which Praveen Bhatia, Ramkishan Bhatia, Ashwani Bhatia and Promila Bhatia are partners. THE agreement between the parties incorporating the terms of conditions of the said contract of carrying and forwarding agency contained an arbitration clause. Allegedly, the jurisdiction of the Court to determine the dispute between the parties was fixed at Jhansi. Respondents are said to have committed misappropriation of a huge amount which was pointed out in the audit reports of 2000 and 2001. Furthermore, they are said to have created several other forged and fraudulent credits in favour of some entities in which they had substantial interest which was allegedly detected by the Company's Account Manager. Parties hereto invoked the arbitration clause contained in the said agreement. The company appointed one Shri M.P. Dixit as an Arbitrator. The respondents are said to have appeared before the said Arbitrator and filed copies of the pleadings, applications etc. and also collected a copy of the note-sheet but absented themselves from other and further proceedings before the Arbitrator. Respondent, however, alleged that the purported agreement dated 1.10.1999 is a forged one and, in fact, an agreement had been entered into by and between the company and the firm on 1.4.1999. The firm, however, appointed one Mr. Sudesh Kukreja who is said to have made an award against the appellant for a sum of Rs.4,70,000/- on or about 23.1.2004. The said award has been received by the Company at Jhansi on 31.3.2004 whereafter an objection under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (for short, 'the Act') is said to have been filed in the Court of District Judge, Jhansi.
(3.) THE Firm filed five applications under Section 9 of the Act which were marked as Application No.68, 69, 72, 73 and 74 of 2004 through its partners against the company in the Court of District Judge, Ludhiana. Mr. Dixit is said to have made an award in favour of the company awarding a sum of Rs.3,56,54,487.37 at Jhansi upon adjusting the amount of security amounting to Rs.20 lakh as well as the amount of commission etc.;