SUNIL MUKHERJEE Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is an appeal against the judgment and order passed by Salil K. Roy Chowdhury, J. on the 15th Nov. 1973. By his order the learned Judge dismissed, for reasons recorded in the judgment, the application made, by the appellant for setting aside an award dated the 28th June, 1971 and also for a declaration that the order dated the 21st Feb. 1961 is invalid, without jurisdiction and of no effect.

(2.) THE facts of the case have been fully and correctly set out in the judgment of the learned trial Judge. THE facts material for the purpose of the appeal may be briefly stated. THE appellant is a building contractor and entered into an agreement dated the 11th April, 1962 with the Union of India for various construction works in and/or of the railway station building at Durgapur. THE said agreement contains an arbitration clause. THE relevant portion of the said clause reads as follows:

(3.) IT may be noted that the validity of this order has been challenged in this proceeding. After the said order had been passed, joint arbitrators appointed by the said order entered upon the reference and the parties filed their statements and counter-statements Before them. In or about December, 1966 the appellant made an application before the Court, inter alia, for removal of the said arbitrators and for revocation of the arbitration agreement. The said application, however, was subsequently withdrawn on the 7th May, 1968. IT has been alleged that the said application was withdrawn by the appellant as he had been assured that his claim would be settled departmentally. On the 6th Jan. 1970 a letter was addressed by the Solicitor for the appellant to the Solicitor of the Central Government at Calcutta and in this letter the fact of withdrawal of the application by the appellant had been mentioned. In this letter it was also alleged that the joint arbitrators could not act as one of the arbitrators had then become the Chief Engineer and in this letter the railway administration was asked to decide the claim of the appellant departmentally without going into the formalities of fresh arbitration proceedings. This letter and the reply which was sent by the Solicitor to the Central Government on the 8th May, 1970 have both been set out by the learned trial Judge in his judgment. From the reply it appears that the Union had no objection to an arbitrator being appointed through Court in terms of the agreement but the Union was not agreeable to have the claim of the appellant decided by the railways departmentally. Various applications were thereafter made before the Court for extension of time to make the award by the arbitrators and the last order was passed by Salil K. Roy Chowdhury J. extending the time to make the award till the 30th June, 1971. The said award was duly made and published within the extended period. IT has been stated in the petition that the said award was filed in his Court on the 22nd June, 1972. The claim of the appellant in dispute is said to be over Rs. 17 lakhs and under the award the arbitrators awarded the appellant a sum of Rs. 37,230/-. The validity of the said award has been questioned by the appellant in this proceeding. The grounds on which the said award has been impeached are set out in para 42 of the petition and the main prayers of the appellant in the petition are that 'the said purported Award dated 28th June 1971 be set aside and/or be declared null and void' and 'that it be declared that the said order dated 21st Feb. 1961 is invalid without jurisdiction and of no effect.'