JUDGMENT : (per Sri Vipin Sanghi, C.J.)
The present Appeal is preferred under Section 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 to assail the order dated 05.12.2022 passed by the Commercial Court, Dehradun in Arbitration Case No. 102 of 2022.
2. The appellant had preferred the said petition under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, on which the Commercial Court has issued notice to the respondents, returnable on 09.01.2023. The Commercial Court has, however, not granted an ex parte stay of encashment of the Bank Guarantee in favour of the appellant and, consequently, the appellant has preferred the present Appeal. The petition preferred by the appellant
1
under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 is still pending consideration, and has not been rejected.
3. In these circumstances, in our view, the case does not fall within the scope of Section 37(1)(b) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, which permits an appeal to be preferred against an order "granting or refusing to grant any measure under Section 9".
4. It goes without saying that in case the Commercial Court eventually finds merit in the appellant's case, it can issue directions for restoration of status quo ante even if the Bank Guarantee is encashed in the meantime.
5. The Appeal is, accordingly, dismissed in the aforesaid terms.
6. Consequently, pending applications, if any, also stand dismissed.
________________
VIPIN SANGHI, C.J.
____________
R.C. KHULBE, J.
Dt: 20thDecember, 2022 Rathour
2