Commercial Court Cannot Deny Liberty To Refile Suit Without Rejection Under The CPC: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on 8 April 2026 held that a Commercial Court cannot deny a party the liberty to withdraw a suit with permission to institute a fresh suit unless the plaint is rejected under Order VII Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. A Division Bench of Justices Vivek Chaudhary and Renu Bhatnagar set aside a Commercial Court order dated 15 December 2025 that permitted withdrawal of the suit without granting the appellant the liberty to file afresh. The Court held: “In absence...

Busy Schedule, Travel Not 'Sufficient Cause': Karnataka High Court Refuses To Condone Delay In Arbitration Appeal

The Karnataka High Court has recently refused to condone a delay of 85 days in filing an appeal under Section 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, holding that a busy schedule and travel do not constitute “sufficient cause." Holding that the appeal was barred by limitation and also devoid of merit, the court dismissed the appeal filed by L Vivekananda against Handy 101 Solutions and Service Pvt. Ltd. and its promoter Peter Pushparaj, thereby upholding the Commercial Court's order...

IOCL 'State' Status Analysis Misplaced In Contractual Dispute: Calcutta High Court Upholds Setting Aside Of Award

The Calcutta High Court has upheld a Single Judge's order setting aside an arbitral award after noting that the arbitrator had entered into constitutional considerations under Article 12 (Definition of State) in a dispute arising purely out of a commercial contract involving Indian Oil Corporation Limited. It observed that such an approach was misplaced and further held that the arbitrator had rewritten the terms of the contract and awarded damages without any supporting evidence. A Division...

Seat Of Arbitration Can Be Inferred From Exclusive Jurisdiction Clause: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on 8 April 2026 held that where an agreement provides for arbitration and also contains an exclusive jurisdiction clause, such clause indicates the seat of arbitration even if the agreement does not expressly specify the seat or venue. A Single-Judge Bench of Justice Subramonium Prasad heard a petition under Section 11 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 filed by Pidge Technologies Pvt. Ltd. seeking appointment of an arbitrator in its dispute with Sliksync...

Delhi High Court Upholds Arbitral Award In Favour Of NCC In AIIMS Bhopal Project Dispute With Health Ministry

The Delhi High Court has upheld an arbitral award in favour of NCC Limited in a dispute arising from the construction of the medical college and hostel complex at AIIMS Bhopal, finding no ground for interference under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. Justice Jasmeet Singh dismissed a petition filed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare challenging the arbitral award dated 8 May 2017 passed by a sole arbitrator.The court reiterated that proceedings under Section...

When Can Arbitral Awards Be Set Aside? Rajasthan High Court Lays Down Principles To Check Perversity

While underscoring that the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 was enacted to ensure effective and expeditious resolution of disputes, the Rajasthan High Court expressed concern over the increasing trend of arbitral awards being challenged “as if an appeal has been filed.” A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Shubha Mehta dismissed an appeal filed by the State of Rajasthan against an order of the Commercial Court which had rejected its objections under...

Calcutta High Court Quashes Wilful Defaulter Action Against BSCPL, Finds No Evidence

The Calcutta High Court has set aside a lender's attempt to classify BSCPL Infrastructure Ltd. and its guarantor as “wilful defaulters”, quashing a show cause notice issued after the Wilful Defaulter Identification Committee proposed such classification on December 18, 2025, holding that there was no material to satisfy the RBI framework. Justice Krishna Rao held that the essential ingredients of “wilful default” were not made out, observing: “This Court finds that the respondents have not...

Delhi HC Restrains Flipkart From Listing Pirated Bharati Bhawan Books; Ad-Interim Injunction against 17 Sellers

The Delhi High Court has directed Flipkart to refrain from listing counterfeit or pirated copies of Bharati Bhawan's educational books while granting an ex parte ad interim injunction against 17 online sellers. The 80-year-old publishing house approached the court after discovering that its most popular academic titles, authored by renowned specialists like Dr. H.C. Verma and Dr. R.S. Aggarwal, were being sold as pirated counterfeits on the platform. Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, on March 27,...

Delhi High Court Upholds 18% Interest On Arbitral Award, Says Tribunals Free To Grant Such Rates Under Pre-2015 Law

The Delhi High Court has upheld an arbitral award granting 18% interest on the awarded sum to a contractor, holding that tribunals have wide discretion to fix interest rates under the pre-2015 arbitration law. Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar, in a dispute between the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and Anil Gupta, however, modified the award to direct that interest would run only from July 6, 2008, the date of invocation of arbitration, instead of March 8, 2004. “Under the statutory...

Delhi High Court Sets Aside FEMA Confiscation For Lack Of Reasons, Upholds Penalty

The Delhi High Court has set aside confiscation orders passed under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA), holding that such action cannot be sustained in the absence of reasons.A Division Bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Ravinder Dudeja partly allowed a batch of appeals filed against orders of the Appellate Tribunal for Foreign Exchange, which had affirmed penalties as well as confiscation of funds lying in Non-Resident (Non-Repatriable) Rupee (NRNR) accounts.The case arose from...

Delhi High Court Protects 'HIMALAYA' Trademark, Temporarily Restrains Use Of Deceptively Similar Mark

The Delhi High Court has temporarily restrained an individual from using the mark “HIMALAYA THE NUTRA HEALTH CARE” or any deceptively similar mark, protecting Himalaya Wellness Company's “HIMALAYA” trademark for pharmaceutical and allied products. A single bench of Justice Jyoti Singh, in an order dated March 30, 2026, held that Himalaya Wellness Company had made out a prima facie case of trademark infringement and passing off, observing that the defendant had adopted deceptively similar marks...

Bombay High Court Quashes ₹1116 Crore MMRDA Demand Against Reliance Industries Over BKC Project Delay

In a major relief to Reliance Industries Limited, the Bombay High Court on Wednesday quashed a 2017 show-cause-cum-demand notice and a subsequent 2019 demand of Rs 1,116 crore raised by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) as additional premium for an alleged delay in completing its Bandra Kurla Complex project, calling the action arbitrary and high handed. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Suman Shyam held that the demand was not...