Calcutta High Court
Multiway Dealers Private Limited vs Punjab And Sind Bank on 16 February, 2026
Author: Aniruddha Roy
Bench: Aniruddha Roy
OCD-2
In The High Court at Calcutta
Commercial Division
Original Side
CS-COM/15/2026
MULTIWAY DEALERS PRIVATE LIMITED
VS
PUNJAB AND SIND BANK
BEFORE:
The Hon'ble JUSTICE ANIRUDDHA ROY
Date : February 16, 2026.
Appearance:
Ms. Labanyasree Sinha, Adv.
Ms. Shalini Mukherjee, Adv.
..for the plaintiff.
The Court: Ms. Labanyasree Sinha, learned advocate appearing for
the plaintiff presents the plaint.
Referring to the paragraphs 34 to 36 from the plaint, learned
advocate prays for dispensation of the requirements under Section 12-A of
the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 (for short, the C.C. Act). She prays for
leave under Section 12-A of the C.C. Act.
She then refers to the order of the Hon'ble Division Bench dated
September 10, 2025 where under the plaintiff being the writ petitioner
therein, was granted leave to institute the suit within a period of three
months from the date of order of the Division Bench. Being aggrieved
thereby, the plaintiff has preferred a special leave petition. This special leave
petition was disposed of without interfering with the said order of the
Hon'ble Division Bench but the period for the benefit given under Section
14 of the Limitation Act, 1963, by the Division Bench, was extended for
a further four weeks.
2
Pursuant to the said liberty granted by the Hon'ble Supreme Court,
the plaintiff has instituted the instant suit on February 09, 2026, within
the said period.
Ms. Labanyasree Sinha, learned advocate appearing for the plaintiff
submits that unless the suit is allowed to be filed without complying the
requirement of pre-litigation mediation and if the plaintiff avails of the
process of mediation and then the mediation fails, in that event the date of
institution of the suit will be beyond the period within which the plaintiff
was granted liberty to file the suit, and the suit in that event might become
barred by the law of limitation. The plaintiff will be non-suited.
Hence, she prays for leave under Section 12-A of the C.C. Act.
After hearing learned counsel appearing for the plaintiff and after
considering the averments made in the plaint, it appears to this Court that
there is no contemplation on the part of the plaintiff for seeking an urgent
interim relief for which Section 12-A provides for dispensation of the
formalities under the C.C. Act.
However, it is equally true that a complication may arise with regard
to the law of limitation if this mediation fails, and subsequently the suit is
required to be filed.
On a meaningful reading of Section 12-A of the C.C. Act, this Court
is of the view that, where contemplation is not there of any urgent interim
relief, the plaintiff should be sent for pre-litigation mediation. In the event,
the plaintiff and/or the parties of the suit sent for pre-litigation mediation,
in effect, the suit instituted by the plaintiff, shall not be proceeded with,
until the final result in the mediation.
CS-COM/15/2026,
A.R., J.
3
In view of the above and considering the special circumstance in this
case, this Court is of the considered view that the instant suit may be kept
in abeyance and the same shall remain suspended until the final result in
the mediation comes.
Accordingly, the plaintiff shall take recourse to mediation in
accordance with law. It is made clear that in the event mediation fails the
suit shall revive and the plaintiff shall take steps in the suit upon notice to
the defendant.
However, if the mediation succeeds, the plaintiff and/or the parties
shall mention the suit before the Court to have it dismissed. In that case,
the suit shall be dismissed and the suit register shall be rectified
accordingly.
In the event mediation fails, the suit shall revive.
This order shall not be treated as a precedence.
(ANIRUDDHA ROY, J.)
Arsad
CS-COM/15/2026,
A.R., J.
