Inapplicability of Section 42 non-obstante bar to Section 11 applications

Section 42 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, which restricts subsequent arbitral applications to the court where the first application was made, does not apply to Section 11 applications. Applications for the appointment of an arbitrator under Section 11 are made to the Chief Justice or designated High Court or Supreme Court Judges, who do not constitute a "Court" as defined under Section 2(1)(e). Because the referral authority under Section 11 is distinct from the statutory definition of "Court", moving a Section 11 application before a High Court does not trigger the jurisdictional bar of Section 42. Subsequent supervisory applications, including those under Section 29A for extension of mandate, are not restricted to the High Court merely because a Section 11 order was passed there. The doctrine of continuous single-court jurisdiction under Section 42 applies exclusively to applications filed before a "Court" properly defined under Section 2(1)(e). Therefore, filing an appointment petition under Section 11 does not permanently divest the competent principal Civil Court of its statutory powers. (Jagdeep Chowgule v. Sheela Chowgule & Ors. | 2026 INSC 92)