Calcutta High Court
L & T Finance Limited vs Apl Metals Limited & Ors on 20 September, 2017
Author: I. P. Mukerji
Bench: I. P. Mukerji
ORDER SHEET
IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
Ordinary Original Civil Jurisdiction
ORIGINAL SIDE
AP 441 of 2017
GA 2894 of 2017
GA 3140 of 2017
GA 3136 of 2017
GA 3185 of 2017
L & T FINANCE LIMITED
Versus
APL METALS LIMITED & ORS.
BEFORE:
The Hon'ble JUSTICE I. P. MUKERJI
Date : 20th September, 2017.
Mr. Satarup Banerjee, Advocate
Mr. Loknath Chatterjee, Advocate
Mr. Paritosh Sinha, Advocate
Mr. Debayan Sen, Advocate
..for petitioner
Mr. Ahin Choudhuri, Sr. Advocate
Mr. Gopal Pahari, Advocate
Mr. Sanjay Ray, Advocate
..for respondent
Mr. Utpal Bose, Sr. Advocate Mr. Om Narayan Rai, Advocate ..for Allahabad Bank The Court : This dispute arises out of a loan agreement containing an arbitration clause. The Allahabad Bank, represented by Mr. Utpal Bose, senior advocate and Exide Industries Limited are not parties to the agreement.
Their interest is said to have been affected by the order dated 31st August, 2017. The petitioner in the arbitration petition (AP 441 of 2017) and Mr. Bose's client have rival claims over the book debts allegedly assigned by the respondent company. It appears from the record that these book debts were assigned by the respondent to the bank in 2011 and to the petitioner in 2016.
Mr. Chaudhuri, learned senior advocate for the respondent company, submits that whatever might be the case, this Court should not have passed the order dated 31st August, 2 2017 restraining its debtor, Exide Industries Limited from making any payment to the respondent.
The claim of the petitioner from the respondent company is about Rs.23 crores. The disputes now appear to be between the parties to the arbitration agreement as well as third parties like Exide, the debtor and the bank claiming to be the alleged beneficiary of the assignment and laying their claim over the debt.
These disputes are to be resolved in a forum other than this Court in the exercise of its arbitration jurisdiction. To what extent the dispute is to be relegated to this forum has to be decided upon affidavits.
Affidavit-in-opposition by 10th November, 2017. List these applications on 23rd November, 2017. Affidavit-in-reply may be filed in the meantime.
In the meantime, Exide Industries Limited will be at liberty to make payment of its debt towards the respondent to the bank leaving aside a sum of Rs.23 crores, which is the subject matter of dispute in this application.
Exide Industries Limited will furnish to the appearing parties a statement showing that a sum of Rs.23 crores is set apart in favour of the petitioner subject to the outcome of this application.
This interim measure is without prejudice to the rights and contentions of all the parties before this Court.
Leave is granted to the advocate on record for the parties to communicate the gist of this order to any other party.
All parties to act on a signed photocopy of this order on the usual undertakings.
(I. P. MUKERJI, J.) sm