Applications under section 29A of the Arbitration Act to extend the time to complete the arbitration beyond the statutory limit can be entertained even after such a period has expired, the Bombay High Court has ruled.
As per the section 29A(4), the jurisdictional court can further extend the period of the arbitral tribunal’s mandate either before or after the expiry of the 18-month time period specified under Section 29A (1) and (3) of the Act.
If the courts cannot exercise its power to extend the mandate of the arbitrator under Section 29(4) after the expiry of the stipulated period then the object of the section 29A would be defeated, said Justice Manish Pitale.
“There is nothing in the provision to indicate that if such an application or petition is not filed before the expiry of the mandate of the learned Arbitrator, the Court would be rendered powerless to exercise its authority,” the judge said.
Further, no purpose would be served by holding that an application cannot be filed seeking extension of time after the mandate has expired, the court added.
"Any apprehension regarding inordinate and unexplained delay on the part of the party approaching the Court can be addressed by holding that the Court would extend the mandate only when it is satisfied that sufficient grounds are made out for granting an extension of mandate of the learned Arbitrator,” the court added.
The HC was hearing a plea by one Nikhil Malkan seeking an extension of the mandate of an arbitrator. The mandate expired in February 2023, however, the parties had extended the same by six months. By the time the six-month extension expired in August 2023, the arbitration proceedings had reached the stage of final hearing, the plea contended. The final hearing commenced on September 11. At the time, the respondent, SCIL, raised an objection saying that the mandate of the arbitrator had expired. Hence, Malkan approached the HC.
SCIL opposed the plea referring to earlier judgments by Calcutta High Court which said even if the courts retained the power to extend the mandate of the arbitrator after the expiry of the stipulated period, an application seeking such extension was required to be made prior to expiry of the extended period. The court extended the mandate till March 31, 2023.
