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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
Rekha Palli, J.
Air India Limited & Ors. - Appellants
Versus
All India Aircraft Engineers Association & Ors. - Respondents
O.M.P. 33 of 2016, I.A. 10716 of 2016, I.A. 7625 of 2022 and I.A. 14936 of 2023, I.A. 2583 of 2017 and I.A. 16467 of 2019 and I.A. 14937 of 2023, I.A. 3059 of 2022 and O.M.P. 34 of 2016 and I.A. 10718 of 2016 (stay)
Decided On : 08-11-2023
JUDGMENT
Rekha Palli, J. - The present decision disposes of two petitions that have been filed by Air India Ltd. under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (hereafter referred to as 'the Act'). These petitions challenge two distinct Arbitral Awards dated 25.05.2016, granted in favor of the first respondents in OMP (COMM) 33/2016 and OMP (COMM) 33/2016, i.e., All India Aircraft Engineers' Association and Indian Aircraft Technicians Association, respectively, regarding their claims. The impugned awards issued the following directions to the Petitioner:
| "OMP (COMM) 33/2016: Award in favour of Claimant/Respondent No.1 "49. In view of the foregoing discussions, award is passed allowing the claims of the claimants with directions to the respondents to pay to them a) Rs.57,92,47,222/- being the principal amount within three months; b) Simple interest at the rate of 12% per annum upon Rs.57,92,47,222/- from 1.9.2006 till the date of the Award within three months from the date of the award. c) Interest at the rate of 18% per annum from the date of award till payment upon the principal sum and interest accrued thereon till the date of the award in case, of failure of the respondents to make the above payments at (a) and (b), within three months from the date of the award. d) Costs of the arbitration proceedings to the tune of Rs 14,53,250/- payable within three months." | OMP (COMM) 34/2016:Award in favour of Claimant/Respondent No.1 "55. In view of the foregoing discussions, award is passed directing a) Payment by the respondents to Arup Kumar Bagchi a sum of Rs.7,81,768/- together with simple interest at the rate of 12% per annum from 1.8.2006 till the award within three months and interest at the rate of 18% per annum from the date of award till payment not only upon the said sum but interest accrued thereon as well till the award in case, of failure of the respondents to make payments, as aforesaid, within the time granted for the same. b) Air India to calculate wage arrears payable to other members of the Claimant-Union for the period 1.1.1997 to 31.7.2006 within three months. c) the respondents to pay: (i) sums found due on calculation within three months thereafter (ii) Simple interest at the rate of 12% per annum on the sums found due on calculation from 1.8.2006 till the date of the award within the time provided in (i) above (iii) Interest at the rate of 18% per annum from the date of the award till payment not only upon the sums found due on calculation but on interest accrued thereon as well till the award in case of failure of the respondents to make the payments at (i) and (ii) within the time granted thereunder (iv) Costs of arbitration proceeding to the tune of Rs. 46,61,250/- within three months" |
2. The assailed Awards relate to a long-standing dispute that arose almost 15 years ago between the Petitioner's predecessor-in-interest, Indian Airlines Limited, and its employees. The 2nd Respondent named in both petitions is a proforma party, and is the Union of India through the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The contesting respondents are two trade unions registered in accordance with the Trade Union Act of 1926. The first respondent named in OMP(COMM) 33/2016 is the All India Aircraft Engineers Association, a trade union consisting of aircraft engineers employed by the Petitioner and its predecessor-in-interest. The Association is organized into five regional chapters located in Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai, and Hyderabad and asserts that it represents the interests of 480 members who served as engineers either under the Petitioner or its predecessor-in-interest. The first respondent named in OMP(COMM) 34/2016 is the Indian Aircraft Technicians Association tha
Employees are entitled to wage arrears from 01.01.1997 despite a Presidential Directive limiting payments, as the directive was deemed unjustified by the Tribunal.
The Court held that the impugned award with respect to Claim 7 was not well-reasoned as required by the Act under Section 31(3), and the impugned award with respect to the award in Claim 11 is contra....
The Court held that the learned Arbitrator had erred in decreeing the award with respect to the rate of interest, and hence, the Award qua issue no. 20 with regards to the rate of interest is liable ....
The court upheld the arbitrator's award, emphasizing limited grounds for judicial interference in arbitration matters.
The court upheld the validity of the arbitral award, emphasizing limited grounds for judicial interference and the necessity of demonstrating clear error or illegality.
The limited scope of intervention by Courts in arbitral awards under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, emphasizing the need to satisfy specific grounds for setting aside an arbitral....
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