Gujarat High Court Says Arbitral Hearing Venue Cannot Alter Contractual Seat, Rejects Kirloskar's Plea

The Gujarat High Court on 8 May held that the juridical “seat” of arbitration cannot be shifted merely because arbitral proceedings were conducted elsewhere or because the arbitral tribunal recorded such a statement in procedural minutes, where the contract required any variation to be made only through a formal written amendment. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice D.N. Ray upheld a Commercial Court order refusing to shift the arbitration seat from Ankleshwar to...

Participation In Arbitration Cannot Validate Tribunal Not Constituted As Per Law: Calcutta High Court

Participation in arbitration proceedings cannot validate proceedings before a tribunal that was not constituted in accordance with law, the Calcutta High Court has held while setting aside an arbitral award in a dispute between Tata Steel Limited and MSP Sponge Iron Limited. “The participation of the petitioner before a forum which was not constituted as per law and did not have the jurisdiction to decide the dispute is inconsequential. A party who cannot act as an arbitrator, cannot also...

Bombay High Court Allows Builder To Pursue Fresh Arbitration Despite Appeal Against Earlier Award

The Bombay High Court has allowed Vardhaman Builders to pursue fresh arbitration for damages over the termination of a redevelopment agreement, despite a pending appeal against an earlier arbitral award in the same dispute. Justice Sandeep V. Marne noted that the Supreme Court had refused to interfere with an earlier Bombay High Court order that allowed Vardhaman Builders to pursue fresh arbitration limited to damages. He held, “The Apex Court has permitted continuation of parallel...

LiveLawBiz Arbitration Cases Weekly Digest: May 3 - May 9, 2026

Nominal Index Elecon Engineering Company Limited versus Bhartiya Rail Bijlee Company Limited & Anr., 2026 LLBiz SC 181Parveen Kapoor & Ors. and Omaxe Limited, 2026 LLBiz HC (Del) 459Spicejet Limited vs Kal Airways Pvt Ltd & Ors., 2026 LLBiz HC (Del) 458Campos Brothers Farms v. Matru Bhumi Supply Chain Pvt. Ltd. & Ors., 2026 LLBiz HC (Del) 465MBL Infrastructure Ltd v. M/s Pradeep Colonisers and Suppliers Pvt Ltd, 2026 LLBiz HC (Del) 468Matsya Fincap Pvt Ltd versus Govind Lal, 2026...

Nine Years Of Silence In Arbitration Equals Abandonment Under Section 32(2)(c): Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court on 8 May held that prolonged inactivity in arbitral proceedings, coupled with absence of any steps for nearly nine years, amounted to implied abandonment, resulting in termination of proceedings under Section 32(2)(c) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. Justice Sandeep V. Marne dismissed the plea seeking appointment of a substitute arbitrator, holding that the arbitral proceedings stood terminated and could not be revived. He observed: “It is incomprehensible...

Bombay High Court Holds Denial Of 30% Solatium Is Computational Error In NH Land Acquisition Cases

The Bombay High Court recently held that denial of 30% solatium in arbitral awards arising from compulsory land acquisition for National Highways projects constitutes a computational error, which can be corrected under Sections 34 and 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, without undertaking a merits review. Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan allowed a batch of appeals filed by landowners, including Prashant Vasant Koregaonkar and others, challenging arbitral awards in proceedings...

Calcutta High Court Upholds ₹151 Crore Arbitral Award On Restitution In Coal Block Dispute

The Calcutta High Court on 5 May upheld major portions of an arbitral award of about Rs. 151 crore in favour of Trans Damodar Coal Mining Pvt Ltd in a dispute arising from cancellation of coal block allocation after the Supreme Court's 2014 judgments. Justice Shampa Sarkar held that even though the mining contract became void after the Supreme Court struck down coal block allocations in 2014, the arbitral tribunal could still grant limited restitutionary relief under the Contract Act and the...

Kolkata East-West Metro: Calcutta High Court Upholds Arbitral Award In Favour Of KMRC

The Calcutta High Court on Friday dismissed a challenge filed by ITD-ITD CEM Joint Venture against an arbitral award arising from the Kolkata East-West Metro Railway Project. It upheld the award in favour of Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (KMRC). Justice Gaurang Kanth rejected the contractor's petition under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act. The challenge was to portions of an arbitral award dated November 21, 2019. The award had rejected the contractor's claims for...

No TDS Payable On National Highways' Land Acquisition Arbitral Awards: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court has held that deducting TDS from compensation awarded under arbitral awards in National Highways acquisition cases is impermissible, holding that forcing land losers to seek tax refunds would defeat the purpose of the land acquisition law's tax exemption.Referring to Section 96 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, the Court observed, "Any interpretation which requires deduction of tax at source...

Mumbai High Project Dispute: Bombay High Court Orders L&T To Keep ₹150 Crore Bank Guarantee Alive

The Bombay High Court has directed Larsen & Toubro Ltd. to continue renewing and keeping alive bank guarantees worth approximately ₹150.34 crore furnished to ONGC Ltd. in a dispute over liquidated damages arising from the Mumbai High North redevelopment project. The court held that ONGC, though largely unsuccessful in the arbitration after the tribunal awarded higher claims to L&T, could still seek interim protection under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act in a rare and...

ONGC Cannot Seek Re-Deposit Of ₹42.89 Crore Withdrawn With Its “No Objection”: AP High Court

The Andhra Pradesh High Court on 7 May held that Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. (ONGC) cannot compel Deep Industries Ltd. (DIL) to re-deposit Rs. 42.89 crore or furnish security for amounts withdrawn in arbitration proceedings, particularly since ONGC had earlier given a written “no objection” permitting withdrawal without any condition. A Division Bench of Justices Ravi Nath Tilhari and Balaji Medamalli dismissed ONGC's interim application in its pending Section 37 appeal against an...

Non-Signatory Collaborator Whose Role Was Essential To Contract Can Invoke Arbitration: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has held that a collaborator whose technical expertise was essential for a contractor to qualify for a project bid can invoke the arbitration clause in the principal contract.This would apply where the collaborator's role makes it effectively a party to the agreement.“The meetings convened between the Employer, the Contractor and the Collaborator, after delay in execution of the contract, the tripartite agreement entered into between them and the further communications...