Civil Revision No. 5004 of 2009 [1] IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Civil Revision No. 5004 of 2009 Date of Decision: 28.10.2009 M/s Aero Club ......Petitioner Versus Shri V.P. Arora and others .......Respondents CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE HEMANT GUPTA. 1. Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? 2. To be referred to the Reporters or not? 3. Whether the judgment should be reported in the Digest? Present: Shri Ajay Sharma, Advocate, for the petitioner. Shri Sanjeev Sharma, Senior Advocate, with Shri Sandeep Sharma, Advocate, for the respondents. HEMANT GUPTA, J. (Oral). Challenge in the present revision petition is to the order passed by the learned trial Court on 6.8.2009 passed by the trial Court, whereby an application filed by the defendant-petitioner for stay of judicial proceedings in view of the arbitration clause in the agreement, was declined, on the ground that the petitioner has sought time for filing the written statement. Learned counsel for the petitioner has vehemently argued that the judgment referred to by the learned trial Court arises out of the Civil Revision No. 5004 of 2009 [2] provisions of Arbitration Act, 1940, whereas the provision of Section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 [ for short `the Act' ], are materially different, whereby it has been provided that an application under Section 8 of the Act is maintainable before filing of the first statement on the substance of the dispute. Mere fact that the petitioner has sought time for filing of the written statement does not amount to filing of the statement on the substance of the dispute. The said argument raised by the learned counsel for the petitioner could not be disputed by the learned counsel for the respondent-plaintiff. It is argued that, in fact, the application under Section 8 of the Act, was sought to be resisted on the other grounds, but the same have not been considered by the learned trial Court. In view of the said fact, the order passed by the learned trial Court on 6.8.2009 is set aside. The learned trial Court, is directed to decide the application under Section 8 of the Act, afresh in accordance with law, expeditiously, preferably within one month of the date fixed. [ HEMANT GUPTA ] JUDGE 28-10-2009 ds