SADHAN KUMAR BHATTACHERJEE Vs. SUNIL KUMAR BHATTACHERJEE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This rule was issued upon the opposite parties to show cause why an order passed Under Section 84, Arbitration Act, 1940, should not be set aside.

(2.) The material facts are as follows: The present petitioner, Sadhan Kumar Bhattacherjee, son of late Dwijendra Nath Bhattacherjee, instituted a suit against a number of defendants asserting that under a deed of partnership, dated 2l September, 1933, a deed of agreement dated 20 September 1933, his father Dwijendra Nath Bhattacherjee, had been, a partner of the defendants and since his father's death, he had become a partner of the defendants in the firm Chatterjee Shaw and Co. He asserted further that the partnership deed was executed by three persons, viz.: Jatindra, Manmatha, and Sunil, of whom Sunil was a benamdar of the plaintiff's father Dwijendra and the plaintiff's uncle Birendra. The plaintiff further asserted that for some time accounts were rendered and payments duly made to his father Dwijendra, but after a time accounts were no longer supplied and a large sum of money was due to Dwijendra from the firm when Dwijendra died on 12 May 1941. The plaintiff further averred that after the death of Dwijendra, accounts had not been furnished to him as partner of the firm and only a sum of Rs. 650 had been paid although a much larger sum was due. Any attempts made by the plaintiff to inspect the books of the firm had been resisted and the other partners were denying that the plaintiff was a partner in the firm. In these circumstances the plaintiff prayed for a declaration that his father late Dwijendra Nath Mukherjee had been a partner of the firm, and that on the death of Dwijendra, the plaintiff and his brothers had become partners in the firm. He prayed further for accounts from 1936 onwards, and for a final decree of the amount ascertained by the Court to be due to the plaintiff on adjustment of accounts.

(3.) On 21 October 1944, defendants 1 and 2 filed an application Under Section 84, Arbitration Act, 1940, praying for a declaration that the matter be referred to arbitration inasmuch as under the partnership deed it had been agreed that all disputes between the partners and their representatives-in-interest should, be referred to arbitration.