1 20arbp1370.10 skt IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION ARBITRATION PETITION NO.1370 OF 2010 AND ARBITRATION PETITION NO. 1371 OF 2010 AND ARBITRATION PETITION NO. 899 OF 2010 L & T Finance Ltd. ... Petitioner V/s. Mr.Ravindra A. Bhegade (1370/2010) & (1371/2010) Balasaheb D. Raut & Ors. (899/2010) ....Respondents (in respective matters) ...... Ms. Shakuntala Joshi i/b M/s. S.I. Joshi & Co. for the Petitioner. None for the Respondents. ...... CORAM : S.J. VAZIFDAR, J. DATE : 20 th DECEMBER, 2010. P.C. :- 1 These are petitions under section 9 of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996. 2 20arbp1370.10 2 According to the Petitioners, the Respondents are bound and liable to pay various sums of money under loan-cum-hypothecation agreements entered into between the Petitioner and Respondent No.1 and Respondent No.2 in Arbitration Petition No.899 of 2010 and Respondent No.1 in the other petitions. Respondent No.3 in Arbitration Petition No. 899 of 2010 is the guarantor. According to the Petitioner, the amounts under the said agreements have not been repaid. The Petitioners’ dues are secured by the hypothecation of the respective vehicles. As a result thereof, the matters are to be decided in arbitration. 3 I am inclined to direct the Court Receiver to take possession of the vehicles without giving notice to the Respondents, when the Petitioner informs the Court Receiver of the location of the vehicles. This is to obviate the Respondent from creating any difficulties in the Court Receiver implementing this order. The same would not prejudice the Respondents as they are always at liberty to apply in the event of their being aggrieved by the same. 4 In the circumstances, the above petitions are disposed of by the following order :- (i) Pending the hearing and final disposal of the arbitration proceedings, and for a period of twelve weeks 3 20arbp1370.10 thereafter the Court Receiver, High Court, Bombay is appointed as a Receiver of the hypothecated vehicles referred to in the respective agreements and prayer clause (a) or (a-1), as the case may be, of each of the petitions, with all powers under Order XL Rule 1 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. (ii) In cases where the Petitioners inform the Court Receiver of the location of the vehicle, the Court Receiver shall take possession thereof, without intimation to the concerned Respondents. Liberty to the Court Receiver to apply in the event of any difficulty in taking possession of the said vehicles. (iii) Upon taking possession of the said vehicles, the Court Receiver shall, in the first instance, appoint the respective Respondents as an Agent in respect of the said vehicles on the usual terms and conditions including as to and royalty. (iv) In the event of any Respondents refusing to accept the agency of the Court Receiver, the Court Receiver shall file a report for seeking directions, including for appointing an agent in respect thereof or for the sale of the said hypothecated vehicles. (v) Liberty to apply for further reliefs, including in respect of those reliefs which have not been granted by this Court, after the Court Receiver takes possession and in the 4 20arbp1370.10 event of the security being inadequate to meet the alleged claims of the Petitioners. All rights and contentions in that regard are kept open. (vi) Till the Court Receiver takes possession of the vehicles, the Respondents, either by themselves or through their servants or agents are restrained in any manner from transferring, disposing of, alienating, encumbering or creating any third party rights in respect the said hypothecated vehicles. (vii) Each of the Respondents is ordered and directed to disclose the location of the vehicles within two weeks from the date of service of the copy of this order. (viii) The costs of the petitions shall be the costs in the arbitration proceedings. The undertaking to file the affidavit of service within two weeks from today, if not already filed, is accepted. -