KRISHNA CONSTRUCTION CO. Vs. ENGINEERS PROJECTS INDIA LTD.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this common judgment and order, I propose to dispose of OMP No. 7/2001 and OMP 225/2002. OMP 7/2001

(2.) The parties hereto entered into a work contract dated 9.1.1985. The aforesaid contract also contained an arbitration clause being Clause 25. The said clause provides that in case of any dispute arising out of or in relation to the contract, the same shall be referred to the sole arbitration of a person appointed by the Chairman and Managing Director of the Engineers Projects (I) Limited, the respondent herein. The said clause also provides that if the Arbitrator, to whom the matter is originally referred being transferred or vacating his office or dying or being unable to act for any reason, such Chairman and Managing Director or administrative head of the aforesaid at the time of such transfer, vacation of office or inability to act, shall appoint another person to act as Arbitrator in accordance with the terms of the contract. The arbitration clause further provides that such person would be entitled to proceed with the reference from the stage it was left by his predecessor. The arbitration agreement also stipulates that no person other than a person appointed by the Chairman and Managing Director or Administrative Head of the Corporation/respondent shall act as Arbitrator and if for any reason the same is not possible, the matter should not be referred to arbitration at all.

(3.) Disputes having arisen between the parties, the petitioner requested for appointment of an Arbitrator. The appointing authority, as per the arbitration clause, namely, the Chairman and Managing Director of the respondent corporation, appointed Justice B.P. Jha (Retired) as the Arbitrator to adjudicate upon and decide the disputes arising between the parties. However, subsequently said justice B.P. Jha (Retired) resigned from the office of the Arbitrator and, therefore, by exercising the powers under Clause 25 of the arbitration agreement, the Chairman and Managing Di- rector appointed Shri H.M.S. Bhatnagar as the sole Arbitrator and filled up the vacancy in the office of the Arbitrator in the aforesaid manner. During the pendency of the said proceedings before the Arbitrator, the petitioner herein filed an application for recording of evidence, taking of measurement on the site and/ or in the alternative, serving of interrogatories to the witnesses. The said application was taken up for consideration by the Arbitrator and the same was rejected by his order dated 19.11.2000. Being aggrieved by the said order and also alleging bias and misconduct on the part of the Arbitrator, the aforesaid petition was filed in this Court seeking for removal of the Arbitrator and the appointment of an independent Arbitrator.