VIVEK R. NAIR Vs. TATA ELXSI LIMITED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellants who were plaintiffs in the Arbitration Suit have challenged the judgment and decree dtd. 22/3/2016 passed in AS No.85/2012, whereby the Arbitration Suit filed by the plaintiffs is dismissed.

(2.) The respondent - company has appointed the first appellant as a Senior Engineer in the first respondent - company situated at Tiruvanantapuram, Kerala State. Accordingly, an arbitral agreement was entered into between the first appellant and the respondent - company and one of the clauses in the agreement is that the first appellant shall work for a minimum period of 18 months and within that time, if the first appellant leaves the job in the respondent - company, then a compensatory cost is payable by the appellants to the respondent - company as stipulated in the said clause. Admittedly, the first appellant worked in the respondent - company only for a period of three months. Therefore, the respondent - company has initiated arbitral proceedings for recovery of the said compensatory cost. Also it is a clause in the arbitral agreement that the venue of the arbitral proceedings would be in Bengaluru to the exclusion of all other Courts. Therefore, arbitral proceedings were conducted at Bengaluru and the Arbitrator holding that the appellants herein have violated the terms of the agreement, passed an award directing the appellants to pay a compensatory cost of Rs.3,00,000.00 to the respondent - company.

(3.) The appellants being aggrieved by the said award have preferred AS No.85/2012 before the VI Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, Bengaluru City (for short 'City Civil Court') by invoking Sec. 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (for short 'A and C Act'). The City Civil Court has dismissed the Arbitration Suit. Being aggrieved by the same, the appellants have preferred the present appeal by invoking Sec. 37 of the A and C Act.