SATNAM SINGH AHUJA Vs. KARVY FINANCIAL SERVICES LTD.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The captioned proceedings are all under Sec. 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 ("the Act"), with the Arbitral Awards having been passed by an Arbitrator, unilaterally appointed by the Respondent, Karvy Financial Services Ltd. ("Karvy"). Although the Learned Arbitral Tribunal was admittedly unilaterally appointed, the Petitioners had not protested against such unilateral appointment throughout the proceedings, and raised the contention only at the stage of these proceedings under Sec. 34 of the Act.

(2.) The implications of such conduct of the Petitioners, and whether the Petitioners are deemed to have waived their entitlement to object to the unilateral appointment, is what falls for consideration in these Petitions.

(3.) The Learned Advocates for the parties submit that adjudication of Arbitration Petition No. 324 of 2019 would be dispositive of all the captioned Petitions. Therefore, the facts are taken from Arbitration Petition No. 324 of 2019. In that Petition, the underlying transactions involved a loan amount of Rs..00~1.22 crore, computed as of December 26, 2015, being the debt due along with further interest thereon at 14.25%, pursuant to the Loan Agreement dated March 31, 2011. Arbitration was invoked by Karvy, by notice dated November 30, 2016 (this date applies to all Petitions). All the Impugned Awards were passed on February 6, 2018.