Himachal Pradesh High Court Weekly Roundup: September 9 - September 15, 2024
Nominal Index [Citations 52-57]:Kamlu vs Collector Land Acquisition 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 52Novenco Building & Industry A/S v/s Xero Energy Engineering Solutions Private Ltd. & Another 2024 LiveLaw (JKL) 53State of H.P. and another vs M/s Mengi Engineering Company 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 54Aeronfly International Private Limited Versus State of Himachal Pradesh and Others 2024 LiveLaw (HP)...
Nominal Index [Citations 52-57]:
Kamlu vs Collector Land Acquisition 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 52
Novenco Building & Industry A/S v/s Xero Energy Engineering Solutions Private Ltd. & Another 2024 LiveLaw (JKL) 53
State of H.P. and another vs M/s Mengi Engineering Company 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 54
Aeronfly International Private Limited Versus State of Himachal Pradesh and Others 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 55
Bhupesh Thakur Vs State of Himachal Pradesh 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 56
Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi vs. Harsh Mahajan 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 57
Judgments/Orders:
Case Title: Kamlu vs Collector Land Acquisition
Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 52
The Himachal High Court bench of Justice Rakesh Kainthla held that an application under Section 151 of the CPC is not maintainable when a specific provision exists under Section 29A(4) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 for extending the time of arbitration proceedings.
However, the bench also held that the application cannot be dismissed solely because it cited Section 151 CPC instead of Section 29A(4) of the Arbitration Act.
Case Title: Novenco Building & Industry A/S v/s Xero Energy Engineering Solutions Private Ltd. & Another
Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (JKL) 53
The Himachal Pradesh High Court rejected a patents and design infringement lawsuit after observing that it did not contemplate any "urgent relief" and the interim relief plea was filed by the plaintiff just to "wriggle out" of the pre-litigation mediation mandate under Section 12A of Commercial Courts Act.
On the issue of pre-institution mandate under Section 12A of the Act the high court referred to the Supreme Court's decision in Patil Automation Private Limited and Others vs. Rakheja Engineers Private Limited (2022) where the top court had held that the Section 12-A of the Act is "mandatory" and a lawsuit which violates the mandate of Section 12A i.e. exhausting remedy of pre litigation mediation must be rejected.
Case Title: State of H.P. and another vs M/s Mengi Engineering Company
Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 54
The Himachal Pradesh High Court bench of Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua held that the explanation for the delay in filing objections under Section 34(1) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 is insufficient to justify condoning the delay if it appears that the file was merely tossed from one table to the other by the State.
Case Title: Aeronfly International Private Limited Versus State of Himachal Pradesh and Others
Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 55
The Himachal Pradesh High Court quashed a notice issued under Section 91 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Cr.P.C.) by the Cyber Cell, Kullu, which directed ICICI Bank to freeze the bank accounts of a company in connection with an alleged cyber fraud.
The court, presided by Justice Sandeep Sharma, held that the powers granted under Section 91 Cr.P.C. are limited to producing documents or things necessary for investigation and do not extend to freezing bank accounts.
Case Title: Bhupesh Thakur Vs State of Himachal Pradesh
Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 56
Clarifying the limitations of Section 69 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023, particularly in cases involving transgender individuals the Himachal Pradesh High Court clarified that a transgender cannot invoke Section 69 of the which penalizes sexual intercourse on a false promise of marriage.
While explaining the actual mandate of Sec 69 and confirming the interim bail of an accused Justice Sandeep Sharma observed,
“Since under BNS, “woman” and “transgender” have been given different identity and have been defined independently, under Section 2 coupled with the fact that physical relationship inter-se victim prosecutrix and bail petitioner, if any, was developed prior to surgery of victim-prosecutrix, whereby she allegedly got her sex changed, there appears to be force in the claim of the bail petitioner that he could not have been booked under Section 69 of the BNS, rather he is required to be dealt with in terms of Section 18(d) of the Act”
Case title - Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi vs. Harsh Mahajan
Case citation: 2024 LiveLaw (HP) 57
The Himachal Pradesh High Court UPHELD the maintainability of Congress' Rajya Sabha MP and Senior Advocate Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi's election plea challenging his defeat in the Rajya Sabha polls of February 2024.
A bench of Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua DISMISSED an application moved by BJP Rajya Sabha MP Harsh Mahajan to reject the election petition filed by Dr Singhvi challenging the results of the February 2024 Rajya Sabha election in which Mahajan was declared as the winner.