Hon'ble Judges/Coram:
Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Rohinton Fali Nariman

JUDGMENT

Rohinton Fali Nariman, J.

1. Leave granted.

2. The present appeals raise an interesting question as to whether, when the seat of arbitration is Mumbai, an exclusive jurisdiction Clause stating that the courts at Mumbai alone would have jurisdiction in respect of disputes arising under the agreement would oust all other courts including the High Court of Delhi, whose judgment is appealed against.

3. The brief facts necessary to appreciate the controversy are that Respondent No. 1 is engaged in the manufacture, marketing and distribution of Mobile Phones, Tablets and their accessories. Respondent No. 1 has its registered office at Amritsar, Punjab. Respondent No. 1 was supplying goods to the Appellant at Chennai from New Delhi. The Appellant approached Respondent No. 1 and expressed an earnest desire to do business with Respondent No. 1 as its Retail Chain Partner. This being the case, an agreement dated 25.10.2014 was entered into between the parties. Clauses 18 and 19 are relevant for our purpose, and are set out hereinbelow:

Dispute Resolution Mechanism:

Arbitration: In case of any dispute or differences arising between parties out of or in relation to the construction, meaning, scope, operation or effect of this Agreement or breach of this Agreement, parties shall make efforts in good faith to amicably resolve such dispute.

If such dispute or difference cannot be amicably resolved by the parties (Dispute) within thirty days of its occurrence, or such longer time as mutually agreed, either party may refer the dispute to the designated senior officers of the parties.

If the Dispute cannot be amicably resolved by such officers within thirty (30) days from the date of referral, or within such longer time as mutually agreed, such Dispute shall be finally settled by arbitration conducted under the provisions of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act 1996 by reference to a sole Arbitrator which shall be mutually agreed by the parties. Such arbitration shall be conducted at Mumbai, in English language.

The arbitration award shall be final and the judgment thereupon may be entered in any court having jurisdiction over the parties hereto or application may be made to such court for a judicial acceptance of the award and an order of enforcement, as the case may be. The Arbitrator shall have the power to order specific performance of the Agreement. Each Party shall bear its own costs of the Arbitration.

It is hereby 'agreed between the Parties that they will continue to perform their respective obligations under this Agreement during the pendency of the Dispute.

19. All disputes & differences of any kind whatever arising out of or in connection with this Agreement shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of courts of Mumbai only.

4. Disputes arose between the parties and a notice dated 25.9.2015 was sent by Respondent No. 1 to the Appellant. The notice stated that the Appellant had been in default of outstanding dues of Rs. 5 crores with interest thereon and was called upon to pay the outstand........