ANSAL PROPERTIES & INFRASTRUCTURE LTD Vs. DOWAGER MAHARANIS RESIDENTIAL ACCOMMODATION WELFARE & AMENITIES TRUST

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A petition under Sec. 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act") has been filed on behalf of the petitioner for appointment of Sole Arbitrator for adjudication of the disputes between the parties.

(2.) The case of the petitioner is that Respondent No.1 had approached petitioner No.1 for commercial development of the property known as "Rai-Ka-Bagh Palace" located in Jodhpur, Rajasthan as an ethnic Heritage Shopping Mall and Commercial Centre. On 6/12/2004 a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between petitioner No.1 and Respondent No.1 at New Delhi. According to the MOU, the Respondent No.1 was responsible to obtain clearances with regard to change in land use to commercial use and a Hotel. Pursuant thereto a Collaboration Agreement dtd. 1/2/2005 was entered into between petitioner No.1 and Respondent No.1. The possession was handed over to petitioner No.1 on 12/4/2005 after which petitioner deployed guards and caretakers on the property for its upkeep. The work of dismantling etc. was started but the project could not move forward as Respondent No.1 was unable to get the land use changed from residential to commercial.

(3.) After approximately five years on 4/4/2010 a Joint Venture Agreement(JVA) was entered into between Respondent No.1, Respondent, 2, and petitioner No.2 while petitioner No.1 was the confirming party. It was provided in the Collaboration Agreement that if the condition precedent was not satisfied or waived within nine months of JV Agreement, the parties had a right to terminate the Agreement and upon such termination, the Collaboration Agreement dtd. 1/2/2005 would bind the parties. Vide Addendum to the JV Agreement dtd. 4/4/2010, the time period of nine months was extended to additional twelve months. Further, Article 15.12 of the JV Agreement provided for resolution of disputes through arbitration.