NO.39 OF 2002 APPEAL FROM ORDER NO.23 OF 2002 State of Goa v. M/s. U.P. State Bridge Corporation Limited

3. After hearing all the parties, the Civil Judge, Senior Division at Panaji dismissed the aforesaid Application on 20th April 1999 holding that the application was governed by the new Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 and as such, ruled that the said Court lacked jurisdiction to decide the said Application. Aggrieved thereby, the Appellant had filed a Civil Revision Application before this Court, being Civil Revision Application No.149 of 1999, against the said Order of dismissal dated 20th April, 1999. This Civil Revision Application was filed by the Appellant State of Goa on 8th July,1999. Finally, this Court dismissed the above Civil Revision Application on 17th February, 2000 and a certified copy of the said Order was obtained by the State of Goa on 13th March, 2000.

4. Subsequently, the Appellant, on 28th April 2000, filed the objections under Section 34 - 4 - of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 which is registered as Civil Miscellaneous Application No.88 of 2000 before the IInd Additional District Judge, North Goa, Panaji. The said Civil Miscellaneous Application came to be dismissed by the learned IInd Additional District Judge, North Goa, Panaji by his Order dated 3rd October, 2001 which is impugned in this Appeal from Order. The main ground on which the aforesaid Civil Miscellaneous Application was dismissed was that the objections have been filed beyond the time prescribed in law and the argument that the benefit of Section 14 of the Limitation Act ought to be extended to the case of the Appellant was rejected holding that the said benefit under Section 14 of the Limitation Act will not apply. Aggrieved by the aforesaid Order dated 3rd October, 2001 passed by the learned IInd Additional District Judge, the present Appeal from Order No.23 of 2002 has been filed by the Appellant.

5. As far as the Appeal from Order No.39 of 2002 is concerned, the Arbitral Award was passed on 8th November, 1997. On 21st January, 1998, the Appellant State of Goa was served with a notice from the Civil Judge Senior Division regarding the Award being filed in that Court and registered as - 5 - Special Civil Suit and the date was fixed as 17th March 1998 for filing objections. The State of Goa filed objections on 29th January 1998 under Sections 15, 16, 30 and 33 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1940. Finally, the Civil Judge, Senior Division, by his Order dated 7th May, 1998, declined to entertain the said objections and dismissed the Application filed by the State of Goa. Thereupon, the Appellant herein had filed fresh objections under Section 33 and 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 before the same Court on 6th June, 1998. Finally, this Civil Miscellaneous Application was dismissed on 21st March 2002 holding that the objections filed by the State of Goa were clearly time-barred and the benefit of Section 14 of the Limitation Act cannot be availed of by the State of Goa. Aggrieved by the aforesaid Order dated 21st March 2002 passed by the learned IInd Additional District Judge, South Goa, Margao, the present Appeal from Order has been filed on 11th January 2002 before this Court.

6. Shri Thali, the learned Addl. Advocate General, appearing on behalf of the Appellant State of Goa, very strongly contended that benefit of Section 14 of the Limitation Act ought to have been extended to the instant case - 6 - inasmuch as the Appellant was prosecuting with due diligence the aforesaid proceedings in good faith and, as such, the time spent by the Appellant State of Goa ought to be excluded in view of the fact that the Appellant was proceeding bonafide in a Court without jurisdiction.

7. In that behalf, Shri Thali, the learned Addl. Advocate General, relied on a judgment Union of India v. of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Union of India v. Union of India v.