2010 (10) TMI 941

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....ard was in the nature of an appeal against the Award, filed an 'appeal' under Section 34 of the Act before the Guwahati High Court on 6.5.2009 (numbered as Arbitration Appeal No.10/2009). On receiving the notice in the execution levied in regard to the Award dated 6.2.2009, the appellants realised that the proceedings under Section 34 of the Act was not by way of an appeal before the High Court, but by way of an original application before the District Court. However, as by then the courts were closed for the 'Puja Holidays' between 25.9.2009 and 19.10.2009, the appellants filed the application (A.C.No.512/2009) under Section 34 of the Act before the District Court, Kamrup, Gauhati, for setting aside the said award, on 19.10.2009 when the c....

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....he delay was rejected by the High Court by the impugned order dated 7.4.2010. The appellants have challenged the said order of the High Court in this appeal by special leave. 3. Section 34 (3) of the Act provides that an application for setting aside an award may not be made after three months from the date of receipt of the arbitral award. The proviso thereto enables the court, if satisfied that the applicant was prevented by sufficient cause, to entertain the application within a further period of thirty days but not thereafter. This Court in M/s. Consolidated Engineering Enterprises Vs. The Principal Secretary (Irrigation Department) & Ors., (2008) 7 SCC 169 held that neither Section 34(3) nor any other provision of the Act excludes t....

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....ligently pursuing the remedy before a wrong forum. The first respondent contended that different causes were shown and different explanations were given by the appellants in the application for condonation of delay filed by the appellant before the District Court on 3.11.2009, the subsequent application under Section 34(3) of the Act read with Section 14 of Limitation Act filed on 8.1.2010 and the application dated 29.10.2009 for withdrawal of the appeal filed before the High Court. But a careful examination of these applications shows that there is, in fact, no inconsistency. The first appellant is a Corporation and it has to act through its Board of Directors and not at the level of individual officers. It is true that the appellants have....