Recondo Limited vs Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Ltd
2023 Latest Caselaw 3668 Guj

     C/SCA/16287/2022                             ORDER DATED: 29/04/2023




       IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
        R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 16287 of 2022
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                    RECONDO LIMITED
                          Versus
          SARDAR SAROVAR NARMADA NIGAM LTD.
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Appearance:
MR. PARAS K SUKHWANI(8284) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
MR. ALKESH N SHAH(3749) for the Respondent(s) No. 1,2
NOTICE SERVED for the Respondent(s) No.3
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 CORAM:HONOURABLE MS. JUSTICE VAIBHAVI D. NANAVATI

                            Date : 29/04/2023

                              ORAL ORDER

1. By way of the present petition, the petitioner herein had prayed for an order / direction for referring the Arbitration Reference No. 178 of 1996 and 17 of 2009, either to Hon'ble Mr. Justice C.K. Thakkar or any former Judge of this Court.

2. Briefly stated that the petitioner herein is the original claimant and it is submitted that earlier Arbitration Reference No. 178 of 1996 is filed before the Gujarat Public Works Contracts Disputes Arbitration Tribunal at Ahmedabad as per the provision of Section 8 of the Gujarat Public Works Contracts Disputes Arbitration Tribunal Act, 1992 which is pending for hearing. It is the case of the petitioner herein that in view of the judgment delivered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of

C/SCA/16287/2022 ORDER DATED: 29/04/2023

VA Tech Escher Wyass Flovel Ltd. vs. M.P.S.E. Board & Anr, the Gujarat Public Works Contracts Disputes Arbitration Tribunal had no jurisdiction to adjudicate the disputes raised by the petitioner, accordingly, Arbitration Reference No. 178 of 1996 was disposed of by order dated 22.11.2010, which was challenged by the respondents by filing Special Civil Application No. 7171 of 2012 before this Court, which was not entertained by this Court and the same was disposed of by order dated 11.06.2012.

3. It is the case of the petitioner that the respondents had challenged the said order dated 11.06.2012 by filing Letters Patent Appeal No. 1368 of 2012 which was allowed by order dated 04.02.2019. It is the case of the petitioner that, Arbitration Reference No. 178 of 1996 is pending for final hearing since 1996. It is the case of the petitioner herein that Shri Lahiri, aged about 89 years, who is conversant with the facts of the case is suffering from multiple disease and there is no one who can assist for adjudication of disputes, and therefore, Special Civil Application No. 17059 was filed before this Court for appropriate directions to the Tribunal to decide the Arbitration Reference expeditiously and the Court was pleased to direct the Tribunal by order dated 23.06.2022 to decide the Arbitration Reference No. 178 of 1996 preferably within a period of five months. It is the case of the petitioner herein that on 22.07.2022, one of the Judicial Member came to be transferred to another Tribunal and there is no bench available in the Gujarat Public Works Contracts Disputes Arbitration Tribunal, and therefore, the matters are not

C/SCA/16287/2022 ORDER DATED: 29/04/2023

being heard. It is the case of the petitioner that in the aforesaid set of circumstances, in an identical matter between GKC vs. SSNNL, the Sole Arbitrator, Justice Mr. C.K. Thakkar came to be appointed for adjudication of the dispute in question.

4. In the facts of the present case, Mr. Paras S. Sukhwani, learned advocate appearing for the petitioner and Mr. Alkesh N. Shah, learned advocate appearing for the respondent nos. 1 and 2 jointly request that Arbitration Reference No. 178 of 1996 and 17 of 2009 be referred to the Hon'ble Mr. Justice J.C. Upadhyay (former Judge, High Court of Gujarat).

5. Considering the joint statement made by the learned advocates appearing for the respective parties, Hon'ble Mr. Justice J.C. Upadhyay (former Judge, High Court of Gujarat), be appointed as Arbitrator to decide the Arbitration Reference No. 178 of 1996 and 17 of 2009.

6. The Registry to communicate the present order to Hon'ble Mr. Justice J.C. Upadhyay (former Judge, High Court of Gujarat) forthwith.

With the aforesaid directions, the petition stands disposed of.

(VAIBHAVI D. NANAVATI,J) Pradhyuman