Brief facts:
The Appellant had issued an invitation for tender, for the
construction of certain structures across the river Damodar at
Chandrapur, District Bokaro, Jharkhand, which contained
inter-alia, the General Conditions of Contract, Special
Conditions of Contract, Bill of Quantity, etc.
("Tender Documents"). In response to the
said tender, the Respondent submitted its Techno Commercial bid. On
fulfilment of tender criteria, the Appellant vide Letter of Intent
dated December 4, 2006 ("LOI") awarded
the contract for construction to the Respondent. However, with the
passage of time, disputes arose between the parties, as a result of
which the Respondent issued a notice invoking arbitration in terms
of the "arbitration clause" mentioned in the tender
documents and requested the Appellant to provide consent for
appointment of a former judge of a High Court, as a sole
arbitrator. On the failure of the Appellant to respond to the
arbitration notice, the Respondent
