- (1.) THIS is an appeal by the Life Insurance Corporation of India, a body corporate, (hereinafter referred to as the Corporation)against the order of Ramendra Mohan dutta, J. dated January 31, 1972 whereby the application of the Corporation for setting aside the award dated April 29. 1971 was dismissed.
(2.) IN 1955, the National Insurance company Ltd (hereinafter referred to as the Company) invited tenders for construction of a building at New; Delhi. The respondent (hereinafter referred ,to as the Contractor) submitted his tender on March 11, 1955 which was accented by Messrs Ballardie Thomson and mathews (hereinafter referred to as architects) on behalf of the Company an the basis of a letter of acceptance dated April 19, 1955. The said letter by the Architects recorded that a form of agreement in respect of such work pursuant to the acceptance of tender would be executed subsequently and the respondent was directed to start work immediately. The contract for construction of the building was for an amount of Rs. 42,30,000/- inclusive of materials, subject to variation only for increase of price of cement and steel, the accepted basis whereof was Rs. 100/- and Rs. 500/-per Ion respectively. The Company assured all its co-operation in obtaining supply of cement and in fact asked the Contractor to avail or a quota 01 cement allotted to it already. The value of such materials if supplied by the company was to be deducted from the running bills of the Contractor. The contractor on basis thereof started the construction and submitted its bills from time to time in course of execution of the work and payments in part and on account of running bills were made from time to time by the Company to the respondent on certificates issued by the architects as provided in the tender.
(3.) AH assets and liabilities to the if insurance business of the Company including its obligations, right and liabilities under the said tender and acceptance vested in the Corporation which came into existence on September 1, 1956. The construction of the building was completed on April 1, 1959 and the formal agreement in respect of the above construction by and between the parties, earlier agreed to be executed, was in fact executed on October 26, 1960.;