Collateral challenge to arbitral award in execution rejected after Section 34 remedy was withdrawn and the award became final.

A judgment debtor who had earlier filed but later withdrew a Section 34 challenge could not, in execution proceedings, reopen the validity of the arbitral award by collateral objection. The Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 treats Section 34 as the proper remedy to set aside an award, and once that remedy is not pursued to conclusion, the award attains finality and is enforceable as a decree. The Delhi HC therefore held the objection application not maintainable, dismissed it, and treated the execution petition as satisfied.

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Issues: Whether the judgment debtor could, in execution proceedings, challenge the validity of an arbitral award and resist its enforcement after having withdrawn the earlier challenge under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996.

Analysis: The judgment debtor had already invoked Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 to question the award but did not pursue that remedy and withdrew it. The statutory scheme of Sections 34, 35 and 36 makes Section 34 the proper remedy for setting aside an award, limits the grounds on which an award may be impeached, and provides that once the time for such challenge expires or the challenge fails, the award attains finality and is enforceable as a decree of court. The objection sought to be raised in execution was therefore an indirect attempt to reopen an award that had already become final. The Court treated Section 34 as the appropriate and parallel remedy in place of such collateral resistance in execution.

Conclusion: The objection application was not maintainable and was dismissed. The award remained enforceable, and the execution petition was treated as satisfied.

Final Conclusion: A party cannot bypass the statutory challenge under Section 34 and later resist execution by collateral objections to the validity of the arbitral award once the award has attained finality.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 provides a specific remedy to set aside an arbitral award, and that remedy is not pursued to conclusion, the award attains finality and cannot be collaterally challenged in execution proceedings.

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