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2015 (2) TMI 488 - BOMBAY HIGH COURTMaintainability of petition - petitioners were not parties to the said memorandum of understanding which contained arbitration agreement - Held that:- A perusal of the record clearly indicates that none of the members of the society were parties to the development agreement entered into between the respondent no.1 and the society. It is however the case of the petitioners that since the society did not challenge the impugned award and the said award has affected the rights of the petitioners in respect of their respective flats in the society, petitioners who are claiming through the society are also thus parties to the arbitration agreement and being parties aggrieved are entitled to challenge the impugned award though the society has not impugned the said arbitral award. Only the parties to the arbitration agreement can exercise various rights and invoke the mechanism of adjudication of disputes by arbitration by referring their disputes to arbitration for adjudication and not by an outsider. The only exception carved out under the Act is under sections 40 and 41 i.e. in case of the death of a party to the arbitration agreement which can be enforceable by or against the legal representative of the deceased and in case of insolvency, if such insolvant was party to arbitration agreement and if official assignee or receiver adopts such contract. Arbitral tribunal is a private forum and gets jurisdiction to adjudicate upon the disputes between the parties to the arbitration agreement and not the persons who are not parties to the arbitration agreement. Proceedings under section 34 of the Act are not by way of an appeal. There is no other provision under the Act for challenge of an arbitral award except what is provided under section 34 of the Act. In my view only a party to the arbitration agreement which is defined under section 2(1) (h) of the Act can challenge an arbitral award under section 34 of the Act and not by a person who is not a party to the arbitration agreement unless covered by sections 40 and 41 of the Act. However if a person is wrongly impleaded as party to the arbitration proceedings and is aggrieved by arbitral award, he can invoke section 34 of the Act. Since the petitioners herein could not have been impleaded as parties to the arbitration proceedings before the learned arbitrator for want of arbitration agreement between the petitioners and the respondent no.1, nor the petitioners were parties to the arbitration proceedings, petitioners have no locus to file petition under section 34 of the Act for setting aside such an arbitral award. - Principles laid down by this court in the said judgment in the case of Supreme Megha Constructions LLP would be applicable to the application made by the petitioners under section 34 of the said Act. I am therefore of the view that this petition is not maintainable at the instance of the petitioners. - Decided against appellants.
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