Judgment:-

S.B. Sinha, J.

1. Leave granted.

2. Whether the period spent on pursuing a writ petition should be excluded for the purpose of computing the period of limitation in filing a suit in terms of Section 14 of the Limitation Act, 1963 is the question involved in this appeal which arises out of a judgment and order dated 3.10.2007 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Patna in First Appeal No. 388 of 1997.

3. The basic fact of the matter is not in dispute. Appellant was a contractor of the State. It entered into a contract for supply of black pipes to the Minor Irrigation Department of the State of Bihar (for short "the Department") at the rate of Rs. 174.95 per meter. The said agreement contained a clause for escalation of price. On the premise that the price of steel had gone up from Rs. 10804 per MT to Rs. 13031 per MT, appellant, by its letter dated 18.06.1992, stated that as per the terms and conditions of the agreement supply would be made only at the escalated rate for which the additional price was calculated at Rs. 24.09 per meter.

4. Orders for seven lakh meters of supply of black pipes were placed on 16.07.1992. The State worked out the escalation and determined