FIRM TRILOKCHAND GARG Vs. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE order shall also govern the disposal of Miscellaneous Appeal No. 169 of 1985.

(2.) THE appellant applied under Section 20 of the Arbitration Act for referring the dispute to the arbitrator in terms of the contract agreement. This application was filed on 16 -8 -1982. While the application lay pending decision before the court. The Madhya Pradesh Madhyastham Adhikayam Adhiniyam, 1983 came into force with effect from 1 -3 -1985. The application was then decided by the court on 13 -3 -1985 and was dismissed. It is against that decision that these appeals have been filed.

(3.) IN the present case only an application was filed before the court and was awaiting decision for a direction to refer the matter to arbitration. Clearly, therefore, no arbitration proceedings were pending before any Tribunal or Court. That being so, in accordance with the decision aforesaid, proceedings before the court initiated under Section 20 of the Arbitration Act for a direction to refer the dispute to arbitration were for no purpose lay pending after 1/3185. As a matter of fact, when the Adhiniyam has come into force those proceedings should have been dropped leaving the appellant to apply before the Tribunal for relief. That being so, the order in question refusing the applications to refer the dispute has to be set aside.