Aditya Birla Finance Ltd. Vs Tirupati Refrigeration & Ors. — Delhi HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

Aditya Birla Finance Ltd. Vs Tirupati Refrigeration & Ors. — Delhi HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Petition disposed of with direction that it be treated as an application under Section 17 of the A&C Act; interim directions of the order dated 02.09.2024 continued till the prayer is taken up by the Ld. Arbitrator, with liberty to the parties to seek continuation/confirmation/modification/vacation before the Ld. Arbitral Tribunal.

Issue for consideration

Whether, the Arbitral Tribunal having been constituted and the disputes already referred to the Sole Arbitrator in ARB. P.2047/2024, the pending Section 9 A&C Act petition should be treated as an application under Section 17 of the A&C Act and the interim directions continued until the Arbitral Tribunal considers the prayer.

Court's answer

Since the disputes have already been referred to the learned Sole Arbitrator by way of ARB. P.2047/2024, the present petition is disposed of with the direction that the petition itself be treated as an application under Section 17 of the A&C Act.

Ratio / Principle

The interim directions contained in the order dated 02.09.2024 shall continue till the prayer in the present petition is taken up for consideration by the Ld. Arbitrator; thereafter, the parties shall be at liberty to seek continuation/confirmation/modification/vacation of the same before the Ld. Arbitral Tribunal.

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

High Court of Delhi (Manoj Kumar Ohri, J.), O.M.P.(I) (COMM.) 290/2024, Aditya Birla Finance Ltd v. Tirupati Refrigeration & Ors. (decided 03.03.2025): A petition under Section 9 of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996 seeking interim directions concerning a Loan Agreement dated 25.10.2022 was disposed of, with the direction that the petition itself be treated as an application under Section 17 of the A&C Act, since a Coordinate Bench had already appointed Dr. Justice Bharat Bhushan Parsoon, Former Judge of the Punjab & Haryana High Court, as Sole Arbitrator in ARB. P.2047/2024. The interim directions contained in the order dated 02.09.2024 were directed to continue till the prayer is taken up by the Ld. Arbitrator, with liberty to the parties to seek continuation/confirmation/modification/vacation before the Ld. Arbitral Tribunal. Respondents were served but unrepresented.

$~14

IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

- O.M.P.(I) (COMM.) 290/2024 ADITYA BIRLA FINANCE LTD .....Petitioner Through: Ms. Sandhya Chawla, Advocate

versus

TIRUPATI REFRIGERATION & ORS. .....Respondents Through: None.

CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MANOJ KUMAR OHRI O R D E R % 03.03.2025

By way of present petition filed under Section 9 of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996 (hereinafter, referred to as the ‘A&C Act’), the petitioner seeks interim directions with reference to disputes that have arisen between the parties in the context of the Loan Agreement dated 25.10.2022.

At this stage, it is informed that on the petitioner invoking arbitration, a Coordinate Bench of this Court had already appointed Dr. Justice Bharat Bhushan Parsoon, Former Judge of the Punjab & Haryana High Court, (Mob No. 9999688558) as the Sole Arbitrator to adjudicate upon the disputes in the proceedings filed by the petitioner by way of ARB. P.2047/2024.

Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the Arbitral Tribunal having been constituted, the present petition itself be directed to be treated as an application under Section 17 of the A&C Act. It is further submitted that the petitioner be granted liberty to urge all its contentions/reliefs before the Arbitral Tribunal. He further submits that the respondents have been served and an affidavit of service has also been filed in this regard.

This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 07/03/2025 at 12:31:52

The respondents have been served but remain unrepresented.

Keeping in view that the disputes have already been referred to the learned Sole Arbitrator by way of ARB. P.2047/2024, the present petition is disposed of with the direction that the petition itself be treated as an application under Section 17 of the A&C Act.

In the meantime, the interim directions contained in the order dated 02.09.2024 shall continue till the prayer in present petition is taken up for consideration by the Ld. Arbitrator. Thereafter, the parties shall be at liberty to seek continuation/confirmation/modification/vacation of the same before the Ld. Arbitral Tribunal.

MANOJ KUMAR OHRI, J

MARCH 3, 2025/ rd

This is a digitally signed order.

The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 07/03/2025 at 12:31:52