HPCL Bio-Fuels Ltd. Vs Shahaji Bhanudas Bhad (Supreme Court of India)
Supreme Court held that fresh application under section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 is not maintainable in the absence of any liberty being granted at the time of withdrawal of the first application.
Facts- This appeal arises from the final judgment and order dated 31.01.2024 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Bombay in Commercial Arbitration Petition No. 1 of 2023, wherein the High Court allowed the petition filed under Section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 at the instance of the M/s Shahaji Bhanudas Bhad (“the respondent”) and appointed Justice (Retd.) Dilip Bhosale as the sole arbitrator to adjudicate the disputes and differences between HPCL Biofuels Ltd. (“the appellant”) and the respondent.
Conclusion- The legislative intent of expeditious dispute resolution under the Act, 1996 must also be kept in mind by the courts while considering an application for condonation of delay in the filing of an application for appointment of arbitrator under Section 11(6). Thus, the court should exercise its discretion under Section 5 of the Limitation Act only in exceptional cases where a very strong case is made by the applicant for the condonation of delay in filing a Section 11(6) application.
