Kekobad Dossabhoy Doongriwalla v. Municipal Corporation Of Greater Mumbai

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY

ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION PETITION NO.197 OF 2026 Kekobad Dossabhoy Doongriwalla & Anr.

....Petitioners

Versus

Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai ....Respondent Mr. Yashodeep Deshmukh a/w. Pooja Yadav, for Respondent-BMC. Smt. Shelar, Sub.Eng. (H.E.dept.), present in Court. CORAM: SOMASEKHAR SUNDARESAN, J.

DATE : MAY 5, 2026 ORDER :

1.

This is a Petition under Section 29A of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, seeking an extension of mandate of the Learned Arbitral Tribunal, which expired on December 3, 2022.

2.

The parties have been heard at some length to appreciate the flow and conduct of the proceedings. Evidently, an Interim Award has been passed way back on February 15, 2023 and thereafter, there has been no movement at all in the arbitration.

3.

Even discounting the period during which deadline under Section 29A of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 was suspended during Covid-19, Digitally signed by AARTI GAJANAN PALKAR Date:

2026.05.12 12:33:00 +0530 AARTI GAJANAN PALKAR

evidently, there has been an extraordinary delay in the conduct and completion of the arbitration proceedings.

4.

Considering the fact that significant efforts have gone in and even an Interim Award has been passed, having heard the parties and taking on board their consent that no further pleadings of any nature will be filed in the matter, the mandate of the Learned Arbitral Tribunal is extended by a specific period of seven months, rounding it up until December 31, 2026. 5.

The Learned Arbitral Tribunal is requested to convene within a week from the upload of this order on the website of this Court to issue directions to the parties, convening for final hearing. Both the parties agree that it is only a final hearing that will now take place with no further pleadings or new facets of facts being brought in. The final hearing shall be conducted as expeditiously as possible, preferably within a period of eight weeks from today and the residual period of the mandate shall be utilized for making the Arbitral Award. 6.

Initially, while I was inclined to consider other measures, considering the sheer effort that had already been put into the matter, and the fact that only a final hearing has been now agreed to by both parties, it would be in the fitness of things to extend the mandate of the Learned Arbitral Tribunal within the aforesaid parameters and subject to the aforesaid conditions that, at this stage, only a final hearing has been agreed to by both the parties.

7.

Learned Advocate for the Respondent relies upon a judgement of the Calcutta High Court in Rohan Builders1, in particular Paragraph 64 of the judgement, which has been over-turned by the Supreme Court t0 hold that the filing of an application for extension after expiry of the mandate does not preclude the extension of the mandate. Accordingly, this Petition is finally disposed of in the aforesaid terms.

8.

All actions required to be taken pursuant to this order shall be taken upon receipt of a downloaded copy as available on this Court's website. [ SOMASEKHAR SUNDARESAN, J.] 1 Rohan Builders (India) Pvt. Ltd. v. Berger Paints India Limited - 2023 SCC OnLine Cal 2645