Naresh Jain v. Swami Sharaddhanand College
Case brief
What is this about?
This petition sought the appointment of an independent arbitrator under Section 11 of the Arbitration Act, 1996. The court rejected the respondent's objection that claims were not certified, holding it non-relevant for Section 11. The court intervened to appoint an independent arbitrator, overriding the contractual provision for unilateral appointment by the college Chairman.
What did the court decide?
The court appointed Mr. Samrat Nigam as an independent arbitrator to resolve disputes under the contract, abandoning the agreement for the Chairman's unilateral appointment.
What the court decided
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- IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
- ARB.P. 1013/2023
NARESH JAIN ..... Petitioner Through: Mr. Hari Kishan, Mr. Akarsh Sharma, Mr. Keyur Tripathi & Mr. Parantap Agarwal, Advocates.
versus
SWAMI SHARADDHANAND COLLEGE ..... Respondent Through: Ms. Niyati Sharma, Advocate.
CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE PRATEEK JALAN O R D E R
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18.01.2024
- By way of this petition under Section 11 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 [“the Act”], the petitioner seeks appointment of an arbitrator to adjudicate disputes between the parties under a contract awarded pursuant to a tender dated 21.04.2014. The agreement contains an arbitration clause [Clause 25], which provides for arbitration of the Chairman of the respondent-college or his nominee. It has also been provided that the arbitration proceedings will be held in Delhi, and jurisdiction has been vested exclusively in the courts in Delhi.
Issues for consideration
3 issues framed by the court
Whether appointment of an independent arbitrator is permissible under the arbitration agreement and applicable Supreme Court precedents regarding one-sided arbitration clauses.
Whether the objection raised by the respondent regarding non-certification of claims by the architect is a valid ground for challenging the appointment of an arbitrator under Section 11 of the Act.
Whether the appointment of a specific named arbitrator by the high court is appropriate given the parties' agreement to appoint the Chairman or his nominee.
Parties & counsel
- petitioner
NARESH JAIN
- respondent
SWAMI SHARADDHANAND COLLEGE
Coram
PRATEEK JALAN
Case details
As recorded by the court registry
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