Delay condonation application by State in civil revision against arbitral award; court found no explanation for delay between award and requisition for certified copy, dismissed the I.A., and consequently dismissed the revision as time barred.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CIVIL REVISION No.157 of 2018
======================================================
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
Kerns Services Pvt. Ltd. Through its Managing Director, Mr. Mohan Kumar Khandelwal, Son of Sri Durga Prasad Khandelwal, 76, B1/B, Maurya Lok Complex, Dak Bunglow Road, P.S. Kotwali, Patna- 800001, State Bihar.
... ... Opposite Party/s
====================================================== Appearance : For the Petitioner/s : Dr. Shobha Choubey, Ac To Gp 19 For the Respondent/s : Mr. Manish Sahay, Advocate Mr. Anil Kumar Sinha, Advocate Mr. Siddarth Aditya, Advocate ======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE KHATIM REZA ORAL ORDER
Re: I.A. No. 01 of 2019
This interlocutory application has been filed for condoning the delay of 175 days in filing the Civil Revision Application. Learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that the Reference Case No. 135 of 2013 has been allowed in faovur of opposite party on 7.02.2018. It is submitted that after getting knowledge about the Award passed by learned Arbitration Tribunal, the pairvikar of the petitioners filed requisite application for obtaining certified copy of judgment and Award
Patna High Court C.R. No.157 of 2018(11) dt.23-02-2024 2/5
dated 07.02.2018 on 18.07.2018. The said certified copy of judgment and Award was made available to the petitioners on 23.07.2018. It is submitted that the requisition for obtaining certified copy of judgment and Award dated 07.02.2018 was filed much after expiry of the time required for filing of the Civil Revision application. It is submitted that after obtaining the certified copy of judgment and Award the Executive Engineer sent the file to the panel lawyer for preparation of statement of facts for filing Revision application before this Court. The same was prepared by the lawyer and thereafter Executive Engineer approved the said statement of facts and the records of the file was sent to the Superintending Engineer for his approval. It is submitted that on 17.05.2018 the Superintending Engineer after approving the statement of facts sent the file to Chief Engineer for his approval, the Chief Engineer after approving the statement of facts sent the file on 22.05.2018 to the Joint Secretary (Mechanical) for approving the statement of facts to the Department, which was received by the Department on 28.05.2018. It is further submitted that Water Resource Department after examining the matter on 23.06.2018 sent the file to Law Department, which was received by the Law Department on 25.06.2018. Thereafter the said file was sent to
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the learned Advocate General on 02.07.2018. On 04.07.2018 Government Pleader-19 wrote a letter to the concerned authority for furnishing the certified copy of the Award, which was not available in the file. The certified copy of Award was handed over to Government Pleader-19 by the Executive Engineer and thereafter the present Civil Revision application was prepared and affidavited on 13.09.2018. It is further contended that due to fault of Clerk of Government Pleader-19 after affidavited, the present Civil Revision application was filed on 29.10.2018. This delay of about one month has been caused due to fault of Clerk of Government Pleader-19. The delay which has occurred due to aforesaid reason is neither intentional nor deliberate but for the reason of procedural paraphernalia of the concerned office.
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was pasted on the said impugned Award on 20.07.2018, meaning thereby that the certified copy of the said award was issued on or after 20.07.2018.
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apparent lack of bona fide efforts by the petitioners, who filed the Revision application without any plausible explanation from the date of Award and till the date of filing the requisite application for obtaining certified copy on 18.07.2018. There is no explanation for not applying for the certified copy of the impugned Award dated 07.02.2028 and there was no proper explanatory effort by the petitioners for the delay except the mentioning of various dates and in view of the ratio decided in Postmaster General Vs. Living Media India Ltd. (Supra), the petitioners have miserably failed to give any acceptable and cogent reason sufficient to condone such a huge delay of 175 days.
also dismissed as time barred.
(Khatim Reza, J)
prabhat/-
U
1 issue framed by the court
Whether the delay of 175 days in filing the Civil Revision against an arbitral award should be condoned.
Colour shows how this judgement treated each authority
State of Bihar and Ors. Vs. Chitragupta Construction Pvt. Ltd.Relied on¶23
BLJ 2023 (4) 161
Postmaster General and Ors. Vs. Living Media India Ltd and Anr.Applied¶26
2012 (3) SCC 563 · Who else cites this
State of Bihar and Ors. Vs. Messers Trimurti ConstructionRelied on¶23
Civil Revision No. 48 of 2015 order dated 23.09.2015
The State of Bihar through the Principal Secretary, Water Resources Department
The Engineer in Chief (North), Water Resources Department
The Chief Engineer, Water Resources Department
The Executive Engineer, Water Resources Department, Flood Control Division, Naugachia
Kerns Services Pvt. Ltd. through its Managing Director Mr. Mohan Kumar Khandelwal
Khatim Reza
As recorded by the court registry
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