STATE OF ORISSA Vs. NIRANJAN SWAIN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal by special leave under Article 136 of the Constitution challenges the judgment dated 17-8-1981 of the High Court of Orissa dismissing Misc. Appeal No. 145 of 1981 against the judgment dated February 28, 1981 passed by the Subordinate Judge, Baripada, District Mayurbhanj in Title Suit No. 106 of 1980 by which the arbitrator's award for a sum of Rs. 21,11,835.00 in favour of the plaintiff - respondent, Niranjan Swain, was made a rule of the Court and a decree was passed for that amount together with interest at the rate of six per cent per annum from the date of the decree.

(2.) The main ground taken in this appeal was that the arbitrator's award was per se invalid since it gave no reasons. Some other points were raised to which we shall advert later. The question of invalidity of an arbitrator's award merely on the ground that it gave no reasons was involved for decision in a large number of matters pending in this Court and in view of the importance of this common question the bunch of cases was heard and decided by the Constitution Bench in Raipur Development Authority v. M/s, Chokhamal Contractors, (1989) 2 SCC 721. The Constitution Bench has held that the absence of reasons in the award does not by itself result in its invalidity except where the giving of reasons by the arbitrator for the award is the requirement of the arbitration agreement or the deed of submission or an order made by the Court or statute governing the arbitration. Accordingly, this contention raised in present appeal and all other similar matters was rejected by the Constitution Bench with a direction that all such cases should go back to the Division Bench for disposal in accordance with law on the remaining points surviving therein for decision. This is how the present appeal has come before us.

(3.) The conclusion reached by the constitution Bench in the above case and the direction even therein is as under: