ROLTA INFRASTRUCTURE AND TECHNOLOGY SERVICES PRIVATE LIMITED Vs. DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ELECTRONICS, GOVERNMENT OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner seeks stay of a notice dtd. 20/9/2023 by way of the present application filed under Sec. 9 of The Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. The impugned notice was sent by the respondent revoking a Deed of Sub-Lease dtd. 4/7/2008 by which the respondent granted 5 acres of land to the petitioner for 99 years.

(2.) The admitted facts brought to the notice of the Court are as follows.

(3.) The respondent granted the sub-lease of the land to the petitioner for construction of an IT/ITeS Project. The petitioner alleges that the respondent failed to provide power, water and sewage outlet by reason of which the petitioner was unable to complete the construction within the agreed time frame. The respondent, on the other hand, alleges that the petitioner failed to perform its contractual obligations. The respondent terminated the sub-lease on 20/9/2023. The petitioner objected to the notice of termination by a letter dtd. 16/10/2023. The respondent filed an application under the provisions of The West Bengal Public Land (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1962 for evicting the petitioner from the leasehold land and the Collector also issued a show-cause notice to the petitioner. The petitioner appeared before the First Land Acquisition Collector, Kolkata, objecting to the jurisdiction by filing the response in the proceedings. The petitioner issued a notice on 8/11/2023 invoking the arbitration clause contained in clause 5 of the sub-lease agreement.