ORDER

Lort-Williams, J. - This is a petition by the plaintiffs, the Naskarpara Jute Mills Co. Ltd., against the defendant, Nirmal Kumar Jain, in suit No. 2053 of 1940. In that suit the plaintiffs allege that by an agreement dated 24th November 1939 the plaintiffs, through their managing agents, Messrs. The Howrah Trading Co. Ltd., sold to the defendant certain hessian cloth through the agency of Basani Lal Masudi, acting as broker for both parties. The defendant failed to take delivery of some of the cloth which was subsequently sold by the plaintiffs who claim the difference between the contract and the market price. The written contract of sale contained an arbitration clause. The plaintiffs allege that in order to avoid payment and to defeat the arbitration proceedings, defendant has filed a suit in the Court of the Subordinate Judge at Arrah in Bihar, being title suit No. 34 of 1940. They allege that the defendant at all material times resided in Calcutta and carried on business there and had his office within the jurisdiction.

2. The broker also resides within the jurisdiction, and the contract notes were passed by him to the parties in Calcutta. In the Arrah suit, the defendant