The Court: These two appeals arise out of two arbitration petitions
whereby the appellants challenged two arbitral awards passed in favour of the
present respondent by a learned sole Arbitrator. The Learned Single Judge
dismissed the two applications under Section 34 of the Arbitration and
Conciliation Act, 1996, not on merits but on the ground that the same were not
maintainable in the High Court. This is because prior to the setting aside
applications being filed, the respondent herein had approached the City Civil
Court at Calcutta with post-award Section 9 applications for interim orders to
protect the vehicles of the respondent which were in the possession of the
present appellants under loan-cum-hypothecation agreements. Such
applications under Section 9 were entertained by the Learned City Civil Court
and protective orders were also passed. The present appellants approached the
Learned City Civil Court with applications for vacating the interim orders
passed in favour of the finance company.