1. This is an appeal from a decree of the Sub-ordinate Judge confirming the decree of the Munsif pronouncing judgment in accordance with an award. The appeal is preferred by defendant's 1 and 2, but the ground put forward in Support of this appeal is a ground peculiar to defendant 2. She is a pardanashin lady residing at Benares. She and her two sons were parties defendant to a suit for recovery of possession of land. An agreement was said to have been made by the parties to refer the matter to arbitration and the Court made an order of reference. Defendant 2 afterwards objected to the reference, admitting that one had been made but saying that she did not expect to get justice at the hands of the arbitrator. Before this Court it is urged that there was no valid reference to arbitration made by the parties through the Court. It appears that the provisions of Para. 1, Sch. 2 of the CPC, were not complied with in the case of this defendant, who was undoubtedly interested in the matters in difference in the suit along with her sons. The agreement to refer, so far as it purported to be made by her, was signed for her by a pleader to whom a gomasta had given a vakalatnama. This Vakalatnama does not confer a power to refer the suit to arbitration, though it does confer powers to file petitions of compromise and so forth. It has been repeatedly held that the provisions of the paragraph must be strictly complied with in order that there may be a valid reference. Reference may be made to the cases of Ramjiawan Ram v. Kali Charan Singh (1), Seth Dooly Chand v. Mamuji Musaji (2) and Girijanath Roy Chowdhury v. Kanai Lal Mitra (3).
2. It was argued for the respondent that no appeal lay, but the two cases last cited show that an appeal will lie in a case where the reference itself is impugned for want of consent of the parties interested. The appeal is allowed, the decrees of the Courts below are set aside and the case is remanded to the Court of first instance to be continued from the point at which it stood when the invalid order of reference was made.
3. Costs of this appeal will abide the result of the suit.
V.B/R.K
4. Appeal allowed.