Bombay High Court Holds Arbitral Tribunal Cannot Rewrite EPC Contract Or Shift Contractual Risk

The Bombay High Court has partly set aside an arbitral award in favour of KEC International Ltd. in its dispute with Central Railway, holding that the Arbitral Tribunal went beyond the contract by treating increased earthwork quantities as a change in scope and granting additional payment. Justice Sharmila U. Deshmukh observed that a lump sum EPC contract places the risk of quantity variations and site conditions on the contractor. This risk cannot later be shifted to Central Railway through...

Order To Proceed Ex Parte In Arbitration Is Procedural, Not Challengeable Under Section 34: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has recently held that while a procedural direction to proceed ex parte in arbitration is not challengeable under Section 34 at that stage, the outright rejection of a counterclaim for non-appearance amounts to a final determination of substantive rights. Setting aside the arbitral tribunal's rejection of Eureka Forbes Limited's counterclaim against Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), the Court restored it for adjudication. Justice Harish Vaidyanathan...

Delhi High Court Refers PhysicsWallah Lease Dispute To Arbitration Despite 'Inelegantly Drafted' Clause

The Delhi High Court has, on Wednesday, referred a lease dispute between edtech company PhysicsWallah Ltd. and three other individuals to arbitration.The court held that an arbitration clause, even if inelegantly drafted or lacking precision in its phraseology, can still constitute a valid arbitration agreement if it sufficiently reflects the parties' intention to arbitrate. Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar appointed Advocate Mohini Bhat as the Sole Arbitrator to adjudicate the dispute...

Bombay High Court Refers Talent Management Firm's Dispute With YouTuber Prajakta Koli To Arbitration

The Bombay High Court recently referred disputes between Singapore-based talent management firm OneDigital Entertainment Pte Ltd. and YouTuber-actor Prajakta Koli to arbitration. A single bench of Justice Sandeep V. Marne appointed former Bombay High Court judge Justice Sadhana Jadhav as the sole arbitrator to adjudicate disputes arising out of a Performance of Artists Management Agreement dated September 10, 2015. OneDigital had approached the High Court seeking interim relief before the...

Allahabad High Court Allows Writ Petition Against Arbitral Award Passed After Unilateral Shift Of Seat

The Allahabad High Court on 5 May held that a writ petition challenging an ex parte arbitral award is maintainable in exceptional circumstances involving lack of jurisdiction or violation of principles of natural justice. A Division Bench of Justices Ajit Kumar and Indrajeet Shukla allowed the writ petition filed by Sushil Kumar Prajapati the proprietor of Laxmi Medical Agency against the Central Hospital, North Central Railway, Allahabad, and set aside an ex parte arbitral award passed in...

Delhi High Court Upholds Licence Fee In Goyal MG Gases Dispute, Says Conduct Affirms Contract

The Delhi High Court on 12 May dismissed the appeals filed by Classic Motors Pvt. Ltd., holding that its continued occupation of the premises and execution of a subsequent addendum amounted to clear affirmation of the contract, not rescission, and therefore it could not later seek reduction of the agreed licence fee on grounds of alleged misrepresentation. A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Amit Mahajan upheld the Single Judge's decision restoring the contractual licence fee...

Delhi Metro Phase-III Project: Delhi High Court Upholds Arbitral Award Against DMRC Over ₹3.47 Crore ECC Claim

The Delhi High Court has recently upheld an arbitral award requiring Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (DMRC) to reimburse contractor GYT TPL Joint Venture towards ₹3.47 crore in Environmental Compensation Charges (ECC), GST-related burdens and other additional costs. These arose during the execution of the Delhi Metro Phase III Dilshad Garden–New Bus Adda corridor project, including during the extended contract period. Justice Subramonium Prasad held that the Environmental Compensation...

Delhi HC Sets Aside ₹2.43 Crore Award In NTPC-Tarapore Dispute Over Serving NTPC Officials As Arbitrators

The Delhi High Court has set aside an arbitral award directing Tarapore & Company to pay over ₹2.43 crore to National Thermal Power Corporation Limited in a dispute arising from the Farakka Super Thermal Power Project. The court held that the arbitral process was vitiated by a reasonable apprehension of bias, as both the original and substitute arbitrators were serving NTPC officials, with the substitute arbitrator having been appointed by an interested NTPC official. The Single Bench of...

Vague Or Ambiguous Arbitration Notice Cannot Validly Commence Arbitral Proceedings: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court has recently held that arbitral proceedings cannot be validly commenced on the basis of a vague or ambiguous invocation notice that fails to clearly identify the arbitration agreement or clause relied upon, or is not shown to have been received by the opposing party. Justice Gaurang Kanth held, “The Section 21 notice is not a mere procedural formality, rather it is a jurisdictional prerequisite that marks the very commencement of arbitration proceedings.”He added,...

Delhi HC Refers JioStar-Absolute Legends Dispute Over Legends League Cricket Media Rights To Arbitration

The Delhi High Court has referred disputes between JioStar India Pvt. Ltd. and Absolute Legends Sports Pvt. Ltd. over the media and commercial rights of the Legends League Cricket Masters T20 tournament to arbitration. It held that arbitral proceedings should not be unduly delayed once parties before the court agree to arbitrate. Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar appointed Senior Advocate Kamal Nijhawan as sole arbitrator. The court also directed that franchise fee collections and ticket...

Arbitral Proceedings Cannot Be Terminated Twice; Recall Rejection Cannot Be Challenged As An Award: Delhi HC

Arbitral proceedings, once terminated, cannot be terminated a second time, the Delhi High Court has held while ruling that a party cannot treat an arbitrator's refusal to recall an earlier termination order as a fresh termination capable of challenge as an arbitral award. “Arbitral proceedings can be terminated only once and once terminated they cannot again be terminated a second time. The dismissal of the recall application could not, therefore, be treated as a second order terminating the...

Delhi High Court Halts Arbitration in Ramprastha–Rhine Power Dispute Pending Contempt Ruling

The Delhi High Court on 20 April upheld a Single Judge's order directing that arbitration proceedings between Ramprastha Promoters & Developers Pvt. Ltd. and investor Rhine Power Pvt. Ltd. remain stayed until the Court decides a pending contempt petition concerning alleged sale of fifteen flats in breach of a subsisting Section 9 injunction. A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia dismissed Ramprastha's intra-court appeal and affirmed the...