LiveLawBiz Arbitration Weekly Digest: March 15 - March 21, 2026

NOMINAL INDEXUjaas Energy LTD. v. West Bengal Power Development Corporation LTD., 2026 LLBiz SC 122 State of Goa, Rep. By Executive Engineer, Public Works Department v. M/s. U. P. State Bridge Corporation Ltd., 2026 LLBiz HC (BOM) 141 NHAI PIU Aurangabad v. Kerman Sam Amroliwala & Anr.; Kerman Sam Amroliwala v. Competent Authority (Land Acquisition) & Anr., 2026 LLBiz HC (BOM) 143 National Highway Authority of India v. Suresh Pandharinath Matre & Ors., 2026 LLBiz HC (BOM) 151 ...

Contractual Disputes Involving Tax Compliance Arbitrable, Not Sovereign Tax Levy Issues: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has recently reiterated that while disputes relating to sovereign functions such as imposition or levy of tax are non-arbitrable, but disputes arising out of contractual obligations between parties, even if they involve issues of tax reimbursement or GST compliance, remain arbitrable. A bench of Justice Vikas Budhwar relying on rulings in Vidya Drolia vs. Durga Trading Corporation and other precedents, observed, "From the law laid down in the aforesaid decisions,It is...

Meghalaya High Court Rejects Plea That No Formal Reference Was Made, Holds Contempt Petition Maintainable

The Meghalaya High Court has held a contempt petition arising from alleged disobedience of arbitral tribunal directions to be maintainable, rejecting an objection that no proper reference had been made by the tribunal and holding that the process of reference stood completed in the facts of the case. The Division Bench of Justice W. Diengdoh and Justice B. Bhattacharjee held that the tribunal's order directing that the matter be placed before the Chief Justice, followed by orders placing the...

Bombay High Court Directs Gagan Ace Developers To Deposit Rs. 7.81 Crore Arbitral Award For Stay

The Bombay High Court on 18 March upheld a District Judge's order under Section 36 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, directing Gagan Ace Developers to deposit the entire arbitral award amount of Rs. 7.81 crore along with interest as a condition for stay. A Single Bench comprising Justice N.J. Jamadar held that the developers failed to make out any exceptional circumstances warranting an unconditional stay of the award in their dispute with Choice, a partnership firm primarily...

Delhi High Court Dismisses Air India Appeals, Upholds Arbitral Awards On Wage Arrears For AIAEA & IATA

Today, The Delhi High Court dismissed Air India Limited's appeals and upheld arbitral awards directing the airline and its predecessor entities to pay wage arrears of Rs. 57.92 crore to the All India Aircraft Engineers Association (AIAEA) and Rs. 7.81 lakh to the Indian Aircraft Technicians Association (IATA). A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetrapal and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar held that Presidential Directives (PDs) issued on wage revision and arrears for engineers and technicians, are...

Delhi High Court Grants Interim Relief To Jiostar In Legends League Cricket Media Rights Dispute

The Delhi High Court has granted interim relief restraining Absolute Legends Sports Private Limited and another from transferring, assigning, or creating any third-party rights in the media and commercial rights relating to the Legends League Cricket Master T20 tournament, in a dispute with Jiostar India Pvt. Ltd., pending arbitration proceedings. Referring to Jiostar India Pvt. Ltd.'s petition seeking restraint on third-party rights in the tournament's media and commercial rights, the bench of...

Arbitral Tribunal Cannot Direct Renewal Of Determinable Contract: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court has set aside an arbitral award and a subsequent order of a single judge, ruling that an arbitral tribunal cannot direct continuation or renewal of a determinable contract, as such relief is barred under Section 14(d) of the Specific Relief Act, 1963. A Division Bench of Justice P. Velmurugan and Justice K. Govindarajan Thilakavadi held that once a contract is determinable in nature, an arbitral tribunal cannot compel its continuation or renewal. “Section 14(d) of the...

Kerala High Court Upholds Award Granting Compensation For Entire House Rendered Unusable By NHAI Acquisition

The Kerala High Court dismissed an appeal challenging an arbitral award granting compensation for an entire residential building affected by land acquisition for National Highway-66 development in Kasaragod, Kerala.A division bench of Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V.M. dismissed the appeal filed by the Project Director, National Highways Authority of India, reiterating the limited scope of interference under Section 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996.“The...

Time Limit Under Arbitration Act Not Applicable To National Highway Act Arbitration: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court at Aurangabad has recently held that the time limit for making an arbitral award under Section 29A of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, does not apply to arbitrations conducted under Section 3G(5) of the National Highways Act, 1956, as the Arbitration Act applies only to the limited extent provided under Section 3G(6) and only where it is not inconsistent with the special statutory scheme.Under the provision, an award in domestic commercial arbitration needs to be...

Delhi High Court Upholds Arbitral Award Allowing BSNL's 12.63 Crores Counterclaim In Optical Fibre Cable Dispute

The Delhi High Court refused to interfere with an arbitral award allowing counterclaims to BSNL amounting to Rs. 12.63 crores in a dispute arising out of supply of optical fibre cables, holding that the supplier remained bound by its assurance regarding the life of the cables A single bench of Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar observed that when the supplier had assured that the life of the cables supplied by it was 32.8 years, which was beyond the tender requirement of 20 years then it was...

Himachal Pradesh High Court Stays Further Arbitration Over Construction Project At IIT Mandi

The Himachal Pradesh High Court has held that further proceedings in an ongoing arbitration concerning a construction project involving the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mandi and the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) shall remain stayed while it examines IIT Mandi's plea to be impleaded in the dispute arising from an arbitral award of Rs 3,79,52,929. The matter was heard on March 16, 2026, by a Division Bench of Chief Justice G.S. Sandhawalia and Justice Bipin C. Negi. The dispute...

Failure To Deny Pleadings, No Cross-Examination: Delhi High Court Upholds Arbitral Award Against Proto Developers

The Delhi High Court has upheld an arbitral award directing Proto Developers and Technologies Ltd. to pay over Rs 12 crore to Antriksh Realtech Pvt. Ltd., holding that where a party fails to specifically deny a claim and does not cross-examine the opposing witness on a crucial issue, the arbitral tribunal is entitled to treat the evidence as unrebutted and the claim as established.Rejecting Proto Developers' challenge to the Rs 9-crore counterclaim, the Court noted that the tribunal treated the...