- (1.) AS the hearing was going on, a proposal came to be mooted that the entire gamut of the controversies and disputes forming the subject matter of these writ petitions may be referred for an adjudication by a 3 -member arbitral tribunal comprising of a retired Supreme Court Judge, a former Chairman of a State Electricity Board or someone connected with the Central Electricity Authority or such like other Body and a former Accountant General or a Chartered Accountant of proven repute and integrity. By way of first impression the learned counsel for the parties did not appear, as far as they are concerned, averse to such a proposal. They, however, and very rightly so, sought time to seek instructions from their clients.
(2.) AS the learned counsel for the parties have to seek instructions from their clients about the aforesaid proposal, we want to make it clear that the reference of the disputes to the aforesaid 3 -member arbitral tribunal can be ordered to be made by this Court only on the following conditions : - - (i) The parties unequivocally give an undertaking that they shall abide by the Award by this Tribunal; (ii) All possible disputes between the two Boards shall form the subject matter of adjudication by this Tribunal: (iii) All efforts shall be made to conclude the arbitration proceedings as ex -peditiously as possible, and within the give time frame. We, therefore, expect that the learned counsel for the parties shall report to us the instructions of their clients on the next date along with the compliance of the aforesaid conditions, and also, accordingly, if it is ultimately agreed to have recourse to arbitration, to prepare a comprehensive list of all the disputes which may be referred to the arbitration.
(3.) LET these cases appear on 5.4.2002.;