IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Letters Patent Appeal No.1181 of 2011 In Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No. 7518 of 2011 With Interlocutory Application No. 5755 of 2011 In Letters Patent Appeal No.1181 of 2011 ====================================================== 1. The Union of India through the Divisional Railway Manager, East Central Railway, Danapur. 2. The Divisional Railway Manager, East Central Railway, Danapur. 3. The Senior Divisional Mechanical Engineer (C & W), East Central Railway, Danapur. 4. The Divisional Railway Mechanical Engineer (C & W), East Central Railway, Danapur. 5. The Assistant Mechanical Engineer (C & W), East Central Railway, Danapur. 6. The Senior Section Engineer, East Central Railway, Danapur. (Respondents in the Writ Application) .... .... Appellants Versus General Security and Information Services (Private) Ltd. having Its Regtd. Office at 7/C, Abinash Chandra Banarjee Lane (East Belia Ghata), Kolkata - 700010 through its Director, namely, Sri Joydeo Chandra Sinha, S/o Amulya Ratan Sinha, (Petitioner in the Writ Application) .... .... Respondent. ====================================================== Appearance : For the Appellant/s : Mr. N.K. Agrawal, Sr. Advocate and Mr. Madhu Prasun, Advocate. For the Respondent/s : Mr. Sanjay Singh and Mr. Radha Mohan Singh, Advocates. ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BIRENDRA PRASAD VERMA ORAL ORDER (Per: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE) Patna High Court LPA No.1181 of 2011 (2) dt.25-08-2011 2 / 3 2 2 25-08-2011 Re. Interlocutory Application No. 5755 of 2011. The delay of one day occurred in filing the Letters Patent Appeal is condoned. Interlocutory Application stands disposed of. Re. Letters Patent Appeal No. 1181 of 2011. This Appeal under Clause 10 of the Letters Patent is preferred by the respondents – East Central Railway (hereinafter referred to as `the Railway’) against the order dated 18th May 2011 made by the learned single Judge in above CWJC No. 7518 of 2011. The respondent – writ petitioner is a railway contractor. It was awarded a contract of Mechanized Cleaning of Trains & On Board House Keeping Services at DNR Depot for three years from 12th November 2009. Before the expiry of the period of contract, the railway has, under its communication dated 31st December 2010, rescinded the contract unilaterally. Feeling aggrieved, the respondent filed the above CWJC No. 7518 of 2011 under Article 226 of the Constitution. Since rescission of the contract, the railway has issued a fresh tender notice on 17th March 2011. The learned single Judge has disposed of the writ petition with a direction to the parties to refer the dispute for arbitration. It is further directed that the arbitral award be passed by 25th July 2011. Till the arbitration is decided, the tender notice has been stayed. Feeling aggrieved, the railway has preferred the present Appeal. Learned counsel Mr. N.K. Agrawal has appeared for the railway. He has admitted that there was an arbitration agreement under the contract in question. However, the grievance is in respect of the stay granted against the fresh tender notice. Patna High Court LPA No.1181 of 2011 (2) dt.25-08-2011 3 / 3 3 The Appeal is contested by the respondent. Learned counsel Mr. Sanjay Singh has appeared for the respondent. Mr. Singh has strenuously urged that the contract has been unilaterally rescinded illegally. In the event the writ petitioner succeeds in arbitration, the interest of the writ petitioner is required to be protected. We are of the firm opinion that no writ under Article 226 shall lie in the realm of contract. In the present case, in view of the arbitration agreement between the parties, the petitioner has the remedy of arbitration. In absence of arbitration agreement, the appropriate remedy would be before the Civil Court. Besides, in the writ petition the petitioner did not challenge the tender notice published by the railway. We are also of the firm opinion that public works cannot be stalled under the guise of pending legal/ arbitral proceedings. For the aforesaid reasons, we allow this Appeal. The impugned order dated 18th May 2011 made by the learned single Judge in CWJC No. 7518 of 2011 insofar as the tender process has been stayed is set aside. The tender process for the aforesaid work of Mechanized Cleaning of Trains & On Board House Keeping Services at DNR Depot will take its own course. The parties will bear their own cost. Dilip. (R.M. Doshit, CJ) (Birendra Prasad Verma, J)