SP Singla Constructions Pvt. Ltd. vs State Of Himachal Pradesh

 Appeal186 of 2001 Special Leave Petition2436 of 2000 DR.SURAJMANI STELLA KUJUR Vs DURGA CHARAN HANSDAH & ANR DATE OF JUDGMENT: 14 02 2001 K.T.Thomas R.P.Sethi SETHI J Leave granted. Who is a "Hindu" for the purposes of the applicability of the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 hereinafter referred to as "the Act") is a question of law to be determined in this appeal. Section 2 of the Act specifies the persons to whom the Act is applicable Clauses (b) andof Sub sectionof Section 2 make the Act applicable to a person who is a Hindu by religion in any of its forms or developments including a Virashaiva a Lingayat or a follower of the Brahmo Prarthana or Arya Samaj and to persons who is a Buddhist Jaina or Sikh by religion. It is also applicable to any other person domiciled in the territories of India who is not a Muslim Christian Parsi or Jew by religion. The applicability of the Act is therefore comprehensive and applicable to all persons domiciled in the territory of India who are not Muslims Christians Parsis or Jews by religion. The term "Hindu" has not been defined either under the Act or Indian Succession Act or any other enactment of the Legislature. As far back as in 1903 the Privy Council in Bhagwan Koer v. J.C. Bose & Ors. Calcutta Series 11] observed: "We shall not attempt here to lay down a general definition of what is meant by the term ’Hindu’. to make it accurate and at the same time sufficiently comprehensive as well as distinctive is extremely difficult. The Hindu religion is marvellously catholic and elastic. Its theology is marked by eclecticism and tolerance and almost unlimited freedom of private worship. Its social code is much more stringent but amongst its different castes and sections exhibits wide diversity of practice. No trait is more marked of Hindu society in general than its horror of using the meat of the cow. Yet the Chamaras who profess Hinduism but who eat beef and the flesh of dead animals are however low in the scale included within its pale. It is easier to say who are not Hindus not practically and separation of Hindus from non Hindus is not a matter of so much difficulty. The people know the differences well and can easily tell who are Hindus and who are not The Act is therefore applicable to: "(1) All Hindus including a Virashaiva a Lingayat a Brahmo Prarthana Samajist and an Arya Samajist Budhists Jains Sikhs In this appeal the parties are admittedly tribals the appellant being a Oraon and the respondent a Santhal. In the absence of a notification or order under Article 342 of the Constitution they are deemed to be Hindus. Even if a notification is issued under the Constitution the Act can be applied to Scheduled Tribes as well by a further notification in terms of Sub sectionof Section 2 of the Act. It is not disputed before us that in the Constitution Scheduled Tribes) Order 1950 as amended by Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes OrderActs 63 of 1956 108 of 1976 187 and 15 of 1990 both the tribes to which the parties belong are specified in Part XII. It is conceded even by the appellant that "the parties to the petition are two Tribals who otherwise profess Hinduism but their marriage being out of the purview of Hindu Marriage Act 1955 in light of Section 2(2) of the Act are thus governed only by their Santal Customs and usage". The appellant has however relied upon an alleged custom in the Tribe which mandates monogamy as a rule. It is submitted that as the respondent has solemnised a second marriage during the subsistence of the first marriage with the appellant the second marriage being void the respondent is liable to be prosecuted for the offence punishable under Section 494 of the Indian Penal Code. No custom can create an offence as it essentially deals with the civil rights of the parties and no person can be convicted of any offence except for violation of law in force at the time of commission of the act charged. Custom may be proved for the determination of the civil rights of the parties including their status the establishment of which may be used for the purposes of proving the ingredients of an offence which under Section 3(37) of the General Clauses Act would mean an act or omission punishable by any law by way of fine or imprisonment Article 20 of the Constitution guaranteeing protection in respect of conviction of offence provides that no person shall be convicted of any offence except for violation of law in force at the time of commission of the act charged as an offence. Law under Article 13 clause of the Constitution means the law made by the Legislature including intravires statutory orders and orders made in exercise of powers conferred by the statutory rules. The expression custom and usage" has been defined under Section 3(a) of the Act as: "the expression ’custom’ and ’usage’ and rule which having been continuously and uniformly observed for a long time has obtained the force of law among Hindus in any local area tribe community group or family Provided that the rule is certain and not unreasonable or opposed to public policy and Provided further that in the case of a rule applicable only to a family it has not been discontinued by the For custom to have the colour of a rule or law it is necessary for the party claiming it to plead and thereafter prove that such custom is ancient certain and reasonable Custom being in derogation of the general rule is required to be construed strictly. The party relying upon a custom is obliged to establish it by clear and unambiguous evidence. In Ramalakshmi Ammal v. Sivanatha Perumal Sethuraya held: "It is of the essence of special usage modifying the ordinary law of succession that they should be ancient and invariable and it is further essential that they should be established to be so by clear and unambiguous evidence. It is only by means of such evidence that the courts can be assured of their existence and that they possess the conditions of antiquity and certainty on which alone their legal title to This Court in Mirza Raja Pushpavati Vijayaram Gajapathi Raj & ors. v. Sri Pushavathi Visweswar Gajapathiraj Rajkumar of Vizianagram & Ors. again reiterated the same position of law regarding the establishment of a custom upon which a party intends to rely. The importance of the custom in relation to the applicability of the Act has been acknowledged by the Legislature by incorporating Section 29 saving the validity of a marriage solemnised prior to the commencement of the Act which may otherwise be invalid after passing of the Act Nothing in the Act can affect any right recognised by custom or conferred by any said enactment to obtain the dissolution of a Hindu Marriage whether solemnised before or after the commencement of the Act even without the proof of the conditions precedent for declaring the marriage invalid as incorporated in Sections 10 to 13 of the Act. In this case the appellant filed a complaint in the Court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate New Delhi stating therein that her marriage was solemnised with the respondent in Delhi according to Hindu rites and customs". Alleging that the respondent has solemnised another marriage with the Accused No.2 the complainant pleaded: "That the accused No.1 has not obtained any divorce thro’ the Court of Law upto this date and hence the action of the accused No.1 is illegal and contravene the provision of law as laid down under Section Nowhere in the complaint the appellant has referred to any alleged custom having the force of law which prohibits the solemnisation of second marriage by the respondent and the consequences thereof. It may be emphasised that mere pleading of a custom stressing for monogamy by itself was not sufficient unless it was further pleaded that second marriage was void by reason of its taking place during the life of such husband or wife. In order to prove the second marriage being void the appellant was under an obligation to show the existence of a custom which made such marriage null ineffectual having no force of law or binding effect incapable of being enforced in law or non est. The fact of second marriage being void is a sine qua non for the applicability of Section 494 IPC. It is settled position of law that for fastening the criminal liability the prosecution or the complainant is obliged to prove the existence of all the ingredients constituting the crime which is normally and usually defined by a statute. The appellant herself appears to be not clear in her stand inasmuch as in her statement in the court recorded on 24th October 1992 she has stated that "I am a Hindu by religion". The complaint was dismissed by the trial court holding "there is no mention of any such custom in the complaint nor there is evidence of such custom. In the absence of pleadings and evidence reference to Book alone is not sufficient". the High Court vide the judgment impugned in this appeal held that in the absence of notification in terms of sub sectionof Section 2 of the Act no case for prosecution for the offence of bigamy was made out against the respondent because the alleged second marriage cannot be termed to be void either under the Act or any alleged custom having the force of law. In view of the fact that parties admittedly belong to the Scheduled Tribes within the meaning of clause of Article 366 of the Constitution as notified by the ConstitutionOrder 1950 as amended by Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Order Amendment) Acts 656 1076 187 and 190 passed in terms of Article 342 and in the absence of specific pleadings evidence and proof of the alleged custom making the second marriage void no offence under Section 494 of the Indian Penal Code can possibly be made out against the respondent. The Trial Magistrate and the High Court have rightly dismissed the complaint of the appellant Learned Counsel appearing for the appellant however submitted that even if the second marriage was not void for the purposes of attracting the applicability of Section 494 and holding the respondent guilty of bigamy the appellant is entitled to maintenance succession and other benefits on account of her being the legally wedded wife of the respondent. We cannot adjudicate upon such a proclaimed right of the appellant. The appellant is at liberty to get her right established by way of civil proceedings in a competent court of jurisdiction. If any such proceedings are initiated the same would be decided on their merits in accordance with the principles of pleadings and proof not being influenced by any of the observations made by the trial magistrate or the High Court. There is no merit in this appeal which is accordingly dismissed

Summary: The fact that a named arbitrator is an employee of one of the parties is not ipso facto a ground to raise a presumption of bias or lack of independence on his part.” The appellant was awarded construction work contract on 19.12.2006 relating to balance work of 214.00 mtrs. span C/C bearings on abutment bridge over river Beas at Harsipattan on Mandi Rewalsar Chandesh-Rakhota Maserah Sarkaghat Tihra Sandhole Alampur Jawalamukhi road for a sum of Rs.14,29,81,500/-.An agreement was also entered into between the parties and clause (65) of the General Conditions of Contract contains arbitration clause. The period allowed for completion of work was on or before 04.01.2009. However, extension was granted to the appellant up to 30.06.2010. The work was completed by the appellant on 04.06.2011 and payment for the execution of work was made. The appellant raised a dispute and requested for the appointment of arbitrator vide its letter dated 18.10.2013.Pursuant to the request of the appellant, the Chief Engineer, HPPWD appointed the “Superintendent Engineer, Arbitration Circle, HPPWD, Solan” as the arbitrator on 30.10.2013 and the said appointment had been made in terms of clause (65) of the agreement. The arbitrator entered upon reference on 11.11.2013. The appellant after requesting for the appointment of arbitrator either remained absent from the proceedings or sought adjournments stating that he intends to challenge the appointment of arbitrator before the Chief Justice as per the provisions of Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. Even after hearing, no statement of claim was filed by the appellant. On 06.08.2014, arbitration proceedings were terminated under Section 25(a) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996.Being aggrieved by the appointment of “Superintendent Engineer, Arbitration Circle, Solan, HPPWD” as the arbitrator, the appellant filed petition before the High Court under Section 11(6) of the 1996 Act praying for appointment of independent arbitrator. The High Court placed reliance upon the judgment of this Court in Antrix Corporation Limited v. Devas Multimedia Private Limited (2014) 11 SCC 560 wherein it was held that in case, if any party is dissatisfied or aggrieved by the appointment of the arbitrator in terms of the agreement by other party/parties, his remedy would be by way of petition under Section 13 of the 1996 Act, and, thereafter while challenging the award under Section 34 of the 1996 Act.The High Court held that the appointment of “Superintendent Engineer” as arbitrator being in terms of clause (65) of the agreement, Section 11(6) of the Act cannot be invoked. The appointment of arbitrator could not be challenged by way of an application under Section 11(6) of the 1996 Act. Being aggrieved by the dismissal of the arbitration petition, the appellant is before us. ISSUES BEFORE THE COURT:Whether the section 12(5) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 has retrospective application?Whether the appellant/contractor can challenge the appointment of the Superintendent Engineer, Arbitration Circle as Arbitrator to resolve the dispute between the parties? RATIO OF THE COURT:On behalf of the appellant, learned senior counsel Mr. Maninder Singh submitted that the appointment by office after coming into operation of the 1996 Act, was no more permissible and any appointment could only be made in terms of Section 11 of 1996 Act. It was further submitted that since the arbitrator appointed by office had entered upon the reference, the appellant was compelled to file Arbitration Petition No. 4049 of 2013 and the High Court erroneously rejected the prayer made on behalf of the appellant for appointment of an independent arbitrator by name. The learned senior counsel further submitted that the arbitrator appointed by office, is an employee in service of the HPPWD which the provision of Section 12(5) bars at the threshold. Learned senior counsel placed reliance upon Ratna Infrastructure Projects Pvt. Ltd. v. Meja Urja Nigam Private Limited (2017) SCC Online Del 7808.Refuting the above contention, on behalf of the respondent-State, learned counsel submitted that the appointment of Superintendent Engineer, Arbitration Circle is as per clause (65) of the agreement and as per the provisions of law. In response to the contention that Section 12(5) of the Amendment Act, 2015 bars appointment of arbitrator by post, the learned counsel for the State placed reliance upon Board of Control for Cricket in India v. Kochi Cricket Private Limited and others (2018) 6 SCC 287 and submitted that the provisions of the Amendment Act, 2015 shall apply in relation to arbitral proceedings commenced on or after the date of commencement of the Amendment Act, 2015 and shall not apply to the arbitral proceedings commenced prior to the Amendment Act, 2015 unless the parties otherwise agree.The main thrust of challenge for appointment of sole arbitrator was on the ground that the arbitrator had not been appointed by name but, had been appointed by designation. A perusal of clause (65) makes it apparently clear that it was permissible to appoint a person by designation and this will be evident from clause (65), in particular the sentence “the arbitrator to whom the matter is originally referred being transferred or vacating his office or being unable to act for any reason the Chief Engineer is to appoint another person….”. If appointments were only to be made by name and not by designation there could be no question of further appointment on the Arbitrator vacating his office. It is only when an Arbitrator is appointed by designation that the question of a vacancy upon the incumbent vacating office could arise thereby enabling the Chief Engineer to appoint another person to act as arbitrator. The Superintendent Engineer, Arbitration Circle appointed as the Arbitrator is from the very arbitration circle, HPPWD and such appointment is only as per clause (65) of the contract and we find no merit in the objection raised by the appellant.Likewise, there is no merit in the contention of the appellant/contractor that the appointed arbitrator is an employee in service of the HPPWD which the provision of Section 12(5) of the 1996 Act (as amended w.e.f. 23.10.2015) bars at the threshold itself. In a catena of judgments, the Supreme Court held that arbitration clauses in government contracts providing that an employee of the department will be the sole arbitrator are neither void nor unenforceable. [Indian Oil Corporation Limited and others v. Raja Transport Private Limited (2009) 8 SCC 520, Ace Pipeline Contracts (P) Ltd. v. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (2007) 5 SCC 304, Union of India and another v. M.P. Gupta (2004) 10 SCC 504] The fact that a named arbitrator is an employee of one of the parties is not ipso facto a ground to raise a presumption of bias or lack of independence on his part.Observing that, in government contracts before appointing arbitrators, the appointing authority should be more vigilant and more responsible in choosing arbitrators who are in a position to conduct arbitral proceedings in an efficient manner without comprising with the other duties, in Union of India v. Uttar Pradesh State Bridge Corporation Limited (2015) 2 SCC 52.Any challenge regarding the appointment of an arbitrator as per the terms of the agreement between the parties must be viewed in the context of the agreement between the parties. As pointed out earlier, the parties have mutually agreed that there will be sole Arbitration by the person appointed by the Engineer-in-Chief and that the appellant shall have no objection to any such appointment that the Arbitrator so appointed is a Government Servant. If the appellant has any grievance that the appointment of the arbitrator is by ‘post’ and not by ‘person’, the appellant ought to have raised the challenge before the arbitrator in the first instance. Be it noted, in the petition filed before the High Court under Section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 on 28.12.2013, the appellant has only prayed for quashing the appointment of the Superintendent Engineer, Arbitration Circle, HPPWD, Solan as the sole arbitrator as unconstitutional and sought for appointment of an independent and impartial sole arbitrator to adjudicate the dispute between the parties. It is fairly well settled that any challenge to the arbitrator appointed ought to have been raised before the arbitrator himself in the first instance.In the facts and circumstances of the present case, the proviso in clause (65) of the general conditions of the contract cannot be taken to be the agreement between the parties so as to apply the provisions of the amended Act. As per Section 26 of the Act, the provisions of the Amendment Act, 2015 shall apply in relation to arbitral proceedings commenced on or after the date of commencement of the Amendment Act, 2015 (w.e.f. 23.10.2015). In the present case, arbitration proceedings commenced way back in 2013, much prior to coming into force of the amended Act and therefore, provisions of the Amended Act cannot be invoked. In Board of Control for Cricket in India v. Kochi Cricket Private Limited and others, (2018) 6 SCC 287, this Court has held that the provisions of Amendment Act, 2015 (with effect from 23.10.2015) cannot have retrospective operation in the arbitral proceedings already commenced unless the parties otherwise agree.Moreover, Section 25(a) provides that the Arbitral Tribunal shall terminate the proceedings where the claimants failed to communicate his claim in accordance with sub-section (1) of Section 23 of the Act. In the present case, the appellant has failed to file his statement of claim; and only sent the communication to the arbitrator seeking adjournment on the ground that the appellant has approached the High Court by filing petition under Section 11(6) of the Act. When the parties have specifically agreed for appointment of sole Arbitrator of the person appointed by the Engineer-in-Chief/Chief Engineer, HPPWD, the appellant was not right in approaching the High Court seeking appointment of an independent Arbitrator.The appellant-contractor did not file his statement of claim before the arbitrator since the appellant had approached the High Court by filing petition under Section 11(6) of the 1996 Act, probably under the advice that the appellant can get an independent arbitrator appointed. The appellant had been writing letters to the arbitrator before the hearing seeking adjournment. However, on the fourth occasion, proceedings were simply terminated since no hearings were held on earlier occasions, he expected that his request might be accepted. The arbitrator could have issued a notice warning the appellant that no adjournment would be granted under any circumstances. Since, no such warning was given, we deem it appropriate to set aside the order of termination. Appellant had made a claim on account of delay as indicated in his letter dated 18.10.2013 under various heads. In the interest of justice, in our considered view, an opportunity is to be afforded to the appellant to go before the departmental arbitrator (as agreed by the parties in clause (65) of the general conditions of contract) and the proceedings of the arbitrator dated 06.08.2014 terminating the proceedings is to be set aside. DECISION HELD BY COURT: In the result, the appeals are disposed of with the following directions:- The proceedings of the arbitrator dated 06.08.2014 terminating the arbitral proceedings is set aside. In terms of clause (65) of the general conditions of contract, the Chief Engineer, Himachal Pradesh Public Works Department is directed to appoint an arbitrator in terms of clause (65) of the agreement.The appellant shall file his claim before the arbitrator so nominated and the arbitrator shall afford sufficient opportunities to both the parties and proceed with the matter in accordance with law. We make it clear that we have not expressed any opinion on the merits of the claim of the appellant.