Delhi High Court Says Incomplete Address Cannot Prove Award Service, Rejects GAIL's Limitation Plea

The Delhi High Court on 14 October dismissed GAIL Gas Limited's petition challenging a trial court order that held Saraswati Concast Pvt. Ltd.'s objections to an arbitral award were within time, finding that postal delivery to a locality without the company's complete address did not establish service of the award. Justice Ajay Digpaul held that the postal receipt's omission of the premises number from Saraswati Concast's registered-office address prevented the presumption of service from...

Delhi High Court Directs SpiceJet To Maintain ₹58.80 Lakh In Bank Accounts In Dispute With Travel Agent

The Delhi High Court has recently directed debt-laden airline SpiceJet Limited to maintain approximately ₹58.80 lakh in its ICICI Bank and IDFC Bank accounts while hearing an application by Travel2Agent.com and others seeking attachment of the airline's bank accounts to recover dues under an arbitral award.Justice Tushar Rao Gedela passed the order on October 9, 2026, after the decree holders' counsel submitted that SpiceJet had paid ₹25 lakh towards the outstanding amount of ₹83.80 lakh.The...

Calcutta High Court Conditionally Stays Shapoorji Pallonji Award Against West Bengal Housing Board

The Calcutta High Court on 31 August conditionally stayed an arbitral award dated 13 September 2025 in favour of Shapoorji Pallonji and Company Private Limited against the West Bengal Housing Board, and directed the Board to secure the entire awarded amount within eight weeks. Justice Gaurang Kanth also directed the Housing Board to deposit 50% of the awarded amount, along with up-to-date interest, in cash and secure the remaining 50% through a bank guarantee. Holding that this arrangement...

Delhi High Court Upholds Nil Award In ₹4.37 Cr. NHAI Contract, Says Claims Of Extra Work Needs Proof

On 13 October, the Delhi High Court dismissed Abhoy Charan Bakshi's petition challenging a nil arbitral award in favour of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) over a Rs. 4.37 crore road maintenance contract for the Baharampore–Farakka section of National Highway 34 in West Bengal. Justice Subramonium Prasad held that a contractor cannot claim payment for additional work without evidence establishing that the work was carried out, and found that the arbitral tribunal had no basis to...

Commercial Links With Party Insufficient To Refer Non-Signatory To Arbitration: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court on 29 September held that a company cannot be referred to arbitration merely because it has a commercial connection with a contracting party or the project in dispute. A non-signatory can be referred to arbitration only when material prima facie establishes its consent to be bound by the arbitration agreement. Justice Amit Borkar appointed advocate Tushad Kakalia as sole arbitrator to resolve a dispute over Rs. 12.37 crore in construction dues between New Consolidated...

Interim Protection In Arbitration Can't Be Granted Merely On Disputed Money Claim: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court on 5 October held that a party seeking interim protection under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, must demonstrate a real risk that recovery under a future arbitral award may become difficult, as a disputed monetary claim alone does not justify such relief. Justice Amit Borkar directed Alag Property Constructions Pvt. Ltd. to deposit Rs. 58,97,600 within four weeks in a dispute with flat purchaser Hemlata Ajay Ramani over the refund of money...

Exclusive Jurisdiction U/S 42 Of Arbitration Act Requires First Court To Be Competent: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court on 12 October held that Section 42 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, grants exclusive jurisdiction to the court where an application is first filed only if that court has jurisdiction under the arbitration agreement. A Division Bench comprising Justices N. Sathish Kumar and G.K. Muthukumaar allowed an appeal filed by an investor, subsequently represented by his legal heirs, against Sharekhan Limited. It set aside a Single Judge's order dismissing the...

Developer's Ordinary Business Selling Flats Doesn't Give Partner Blanket Authority: Bombay High Court

On Tuesday, 13 October, the Bombay High Court held that a real estate developer's ordinary business of selling flats does not, by itself, establish a partner's authority to enter into every property transaction on behalf of the firm. Justice Amit Borkar partly allowed a petition filed by Aatif Javeed Merchant, a majority profit-sharing partner of S.S. Crown Infrastructure, under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, granting limited interim protection against unauthorised...

Arbitrator Can't Make Independent Lease Termination Right Conditional On Default: Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court on 16 September held that an arbitrator cannot interpret a contract in a manner that nullifies an independent right of termination expressly provided under its terms. A Division Bench comprising Justices D.K. Singh and H. Shanthi Bhushan dismissed an appeal filed by Padma, the landlord's legal representative, and upheld the Bengaluru Commercial Court's decision to partly set aside an arbitral award against Capgemini Technology Services India Limited. It observed: ...

Company Officer May Face Civil Imprisonment For Concealing Assets During Execution Of Arbitral Award: Delhi HC

The Delhi High Court has upheld arrest warrants against a company's authorised representative for withholding details of its bank account during execution of an arbitral award, holding that filing an incomplete asset-disclosure affidavit cannot shield a company officer from coercive action under the Code of Civil Procedure. Justice Ajay Digpaul dismissed a petition filed by Syed Farhan Ali, the authorised representative of Techno Aircon Industries Pvt Ltd, challenging the warrants issued by...

Permission To Cross-Examine Witnesses Cannot Revive Forfeited Right To Seek Arbitration: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court has ruled that a party cannot seek arbitration in a commercial suit after forfeiting its right to file a written statement within the mandatory 120-day deadline, even if it is subsequently allowed to cross-examine witnesses.A Division Bench of Justice N. Sathish Kumar and Justice G.K. Muthukumar held that allowing a party to participate in cross-examination does not permit it to bypass the statutory deadline by subsequently seeking reference to arbitration.“Merely because...

Arbitrator's Final Decision On Jurisdiction Qualifies As Interim Award, Amenable To Challenge: MP High Court

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has recently held that an arbitrator's decision conclusively determining an issue of jurisdiction as a preliminary issue constitutes an interim award, which can be challenged under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996.The Division Bench of Chief Justice Alpesh Y. Kogje and Justice Deepak Khot held that the appropriate remedy against an order passed in Section 34 proceedings is an appeal under Section 37 and not a writ petition under Article 226...