LARSON AND TOUBRO LTD ECC CONSTRUCTION GROUP MADRAS Vs. KERALA STATE CO OPERATIVE HOSPITAL COMPLEX AND CENTRE FOR ADVANCED MEDICAL SERVICES LIMITED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE common applicant in O.A. Nos. 452 to 457 of 1996 and 50 of 1996 has preferred these Original Side Appeals against the common order dated 26-8-1996 in the said Original Applications, whereby, interim orders granted on 19-7-1996 have been vacated on the ground that this Court has no jurisdiction to try the said Orginal Application filed under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act"), which (Act) repealed the earlier Arbitration Act, 1940 (Central A ct 10 of 1940) and came into force on 25-1-1996.

(2.) , As per Section 9(ii)(d) and (e) of the Act, under which clauses alone these Original Applications are said to have been filed, a party may even "Hefore" arbitral proceedings, apply to a "Court" for interim injunction or such other interim measure of protection as may appear to the Court to be just and convenient. The term "Court" referred to in the said Section 9, as per Section 2(e) of the Act inter alia, includes "the High Court in exercise of its Ordinary Original Civil Jurisdiction, having jurisdiction to decide the questions forming the subject matter of the arbitration, if the same had been the subject-matter of a suit.". Further, as per clause 12 of the Letters Patent (which may be relied on, alone would apply in the present case and not Section 20, C.P.C. in view of Sec. 120 C.P.C., even if a part of the cause of action for a suit has arisen within the Original Jurisdiction of this Court the s aid suit, if leave of this Court is obtained, can be filed in this court.

(3.) SO, the only question to be gone into in these Original Side Appeals is whether the decision of the learned trial Judge that this Court has no jurisdiction to try those applications, is correct.