UNION OF INDIA UOI Vs. S B SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is directed against the order of Civil Judge, Gorakhpur, dated 25-9-1980 making the award rule of the court.

(2.) S. B. Singh appellant is the sole proprietor of the Firm Messrs. S. B. Singh and Sons which carries on business at Deoria. The Firm entered into a contract on 21-8-1970 with the appellant for the purchase of released bridge girders. It appears that later on a dispute arose between the parties and in pursuance of the terms of the contract the dispute was referred for adjudication to Sri K. M. Mall, Deputy General Manager of the North Eastern Railway, Gorakhpur, who was appointed as the sole arbitrator without intervention of court Sri Mall gave his award on 1-12-1971 but he did not file the same in court. On July 10, 1972 an application was made on behalf of the defendant (plaintiff?) respondent to summon the award from the arbitrator and to make the same rule of the court. The application was purported to be filed under Sections 14 and 17 of the Arbitration Act 1940, but subsequently "Sec. 14" was deleted and the application was treated only under Section 17 of the Act. The defendant appellant appeared before the court and contested the maintainability of the application under Section 17 of the Act.

(3.) LEARNED counsel then urged that since the award had been given on 1-12-71 and the plaintiff-respondent had not filed any application under Section 14 (2) of the Act, his application under Section 17 could not be allowed. It is true that normally when an award is made and the notice of the same is given to the parties, it is open to the party concerned to make application to the court under Section 14 (2) for the issue of a direction to the arbitrator or the umpire as the case may be, to file the award in the court and to make the same rule of the court. After this application is made courts has to proceed under Sections. 15 and 16 of the Arbitration Act and if any objection is filed the court may modify the award under Section 15 or remit the same to the arbitrator for reconsideration. But where it finds no reason to remit the award or to modify the same or where it further finds no illegality in the award, it shall proceed to pronounce judgment according to the award. Upon the judgment so pronounced a decree shall follow in terms of the award in accordance with Section 17 of the Act. In the instant case the plaintiff-respondent had made an application under Section 17 for making the award rule of the court. Notice of that application was served on the appellant and he filed objections which were considered by the court. Since the court found no illegality in the award, it made the same rule of the court. No period of limitation is prescribed for making an application under Sec, 17 of the Arbitration Act and it is open to the court to pass orders if an award is filed in the court either suo motu or on summoning of the court, in any of these events, the question of limitation does not arise. This legal position is now fully settled by a decision of the Full Bench of this court in District Co-operative Development Federation Ltd., Pratapgarh v. Ram Samujh Tewari (1973 All LJ 579) : (AIR 1973 All 476). The facts of the instant case are almost identical to that involved in the Full Bench decision. In the instant case the plaintiff-respondent after making application under Section 17, made an application to the court for summoning the award from the arbitrator. The court accepted the request and summoned the award. In pursuance of the court's direction the arbitrator filed the award in the court. The court invited objection and considered the same on merits and made the award rule of the court. The appellant's objection was twofold, firstly that the application made by the applicant was barred by time and secondly that Section 17 does not contemplate filing of an application for summoning the award. The trial court rejected both the submissions. We have already upheld the trial court's findings. The view taken by the trial court is fully consistent with the Full Bench decision of our court in District Co-operative Development Federation Ltd., Pratapgarh v. Ram Samujh Tewari (1973 All LJ 579) : (AIR 1973 All 476).