RAJIV SAHAI ENDLAW, J.

The Union of India (Railway Board) has preferred this petition under Section 34 of the Arbitration Act, 1996 for setting aside of the award No. ARB/AKG/RB/ML/GKP dated 20th December, 2004 of Shri A. K. Goel, Chief Materials Manager, Northern Railway, New Delhi acting as the sole arbitrator appointed under the terms of the agreement between the parties.

The undisputed facts are that the Railway Board placed a supply contract on the respondent for textile material. Out of the material supplied by the respondent under the said contract at several Railway Depots, one of depots rejected certain quantities of white cloth stating that the material was inferior in quality and withheld the payments therefor.

It was the claim of the respondent before the arbitrator that the goods were duly inspected by the technical team of DGS&D prior to clearance; that similar goods consigned to other depots of the railways had been accepted; that initially only a small quantity was rejected after technical inspection and the subsequent rejection of the larger quantity was mala fide; that Rs. 12,44,195/- of the respondent had been wrongly withheld inasmuch as, when the respon