Substitute arbitrator appointment follows the original section 11 route; contractual appointment rights do not revive after proceedings begin.

Where an arbitrator originally appointed under section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act ceases to act, section 15(2) requires the substitute arbitrator to be appointed by the same mode used for the original appointment. Accordingly, if the Chief Justice or designate appointed the original arbitrator, the substitute must also be appointed through that route, not under the contractual appointment mechanism. The other party's contractual right to appoint an arbitrator does not revive merely because the mandate later terminates or the arbitrator resigns, and any appointment made after section 11 proceedings have begun has no legal effect.

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Issues: Whether, on termination of the mandate of an arbitrator originally appointed under section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, the substitute arbitrator is to be appointed by the Chief Justice or his designate or in accordance with the arbitration agreement.

Analysis: Section 15(2) provides that a substitute arbitrator is to be appointed according to the rules applicable to the appointment of the arbitrator being replaced. Where the original arbitrator had been appointed under section 11(6) by the Chief Justice or his designate, the applicable mode of appointment for the substitute remains the same. The earlier loss of the respondent's contractual right to appoint an arbitrator upon filing of the section 11 application does not revive merely because the original arbitrator's mandate later terminates or the arbitrator resigns. The respondent's intervening appointment, made after the section 11 proceedings had been initiated, had no legal effect.

Conclusion: The substitute arbitrator had to be appointed by the Chief Justice or his designate, not under the contractual appointment procedure, and the application was allowed.

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