M/S S K Agencies v. M/S Dfm Foods Limited,

$~46 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI + O.M.P.(MISC.)(COMM.) 105/2026 & I.A. 4762/2026 M/S S K AGENCIES .....Petitioner Through:

Mr. Sushil Kumar Pandey, and Ms.

Isha Singh, Advocates versus M/S DFM FOODS LIMITED, .....Respondent Through:

Mr. Sidhant Kumar, Ms. Manyaa Chandok, Ms.

Ekssha Kashyap, Advocates

CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SUBRAMONIUM PRASAD

O R D E R

% 19.02.2026 1.

This is a Petition under Section 29A of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996, for extension of mandate of the learned Arbitrator for making the arbitral award.

2.

Material on record indicates that vide Order dated 20.12.2023 passed by this Court in ARB.P. 1201/2022, the learned Sole Arbitrator was appointed by this Court.

3.

It is stated that pleadings in the arbitration proceedings were completed on 12.12.2024, issues were framed on 13.09.2025 and the last hearing before the learned Arbitrator took place on 13.11.2025. 4.

Learned Counsel for the Respondent has pointed out a few facts relevant for consideration of the instant Petition. He states that the learned Arbitrator himself has stated that he was having health issues. He states that between December, 2024 to September, 2025 hardly any hearing took place. In fact, he points out that only one hearing took place in March, 2025 but the The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 25/02/2026 at 15:29:20

procedural order was communicated to the parties only in May, 2025. 5.

On the other hand, learned Counsel for the Petitioner states that the learned Arbitrator has communicated that he would be in a position to complete the arbitration proceedings within a period of six months from today.

6.

Considering the fact that substantial time and money has been spent in arbitration proceedings, this Court is inclined to extend the mandate of the learned Arbitrator by a further period of six months, i.e., till 31.08.2026. 7.

Since the mandate of the learned Arbitrator came to an end on 12.12.2025, for the reason that the parties have not mutually extended the period of arbitration by further six months, the period from 12.12.2025 till today is regularized. Reliance is placed on judgment of the Apex Court in Rohan Builders (India) Private Limited v. Berger Paints India Limited, 2024 SCC OnLine SC 2494, has held that an application for extension of the time period for passing an arbitral award under Section 29A(4) read with Section 29A(5) is maintainable even after the expiry of the twelve-month or the extended six-month period, as the case may be. 8.

The learned Arbitrator is requested to proceed ahead with the matter and pronounce the Award on or before 31.08.2026. 9.

With the above observations, the Petition is disposed of along with pending application(s), if any.

SUBRAMONIUM PRASAD, J FEBRUARY 19, 2026 hsk The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 25/02/2026 at 15:29:20