In Brief
The appellants, who claim to be assignees of a contract awarded to S.N. Kanungo for runway extension work, sought to enforce an arbitral award passed in Kanungo's favour after his death. The Union of India opposed their claim on the ground that they were not formal assignees of the decree and that an assignment made before the decree was passed (in 1999) could not create rights under Order XXI Rule 16 of the CPC. The Supreme Court held that the 1976 Amendment to Order XXI Rule 16, which added an Explanation, was intended to clarify that Section 146 of the CPC permits assignees of rights in the subject matter of a suit to seek execution without a separate written assignment of the decree. This removed the distinction between pre- and post-decree assignments and avoided multifarious proceedings. The Court set aside the lower court's dismissal and remitted the case to the executing court to determine the validity of the assignment.
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