Supreme Court judge Justice Ujjal Bhuyan on Saturday questioned the need to celebrate arbitration weeks and organise international arbitration conferences if court judgments and government policies continue to weaken arbitration in India. He said such developments create obstacles to India’s goal of becoming a global arbitration hub.
Justice Bhuyan made these remarks while delivering the keynote address at a lecture and panel discussion titled ‘Arbitration in India: The Reform, Relevance and the Road Ahead’, organised by The Law Forum. Delhi High Court judge Justice C. Hari Shankar and former Himachal Pradesh High Court Chief Justice Rajiv Shakdher also participated in the event. Justice Bhuyan said inconsistent court judgments and regressive government policies are harming the growth of arbitration.
Referring to the Supreme Court’s decisions in the Gayatri Balaswamy case and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation case, he said the judgments have increased judicial interference in arbitral awards and created uncertainty in arbitration law.
He also expressed concern over the proposed amendments to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act. According to him, provisions allowing partial setting aside of arbitral awards and the proposal to create an Appellate Arbitral Tribunal do not support the objectives of arbitration. Justice Bhuyan criticised recent government decisions discouraging arbitration clauses in high-value public procurement contracts.
He referred to policy decisions of the Union Government, Oil India Limited, ONGC, the Delhi Government’s Public Works Department and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. He said these measures contradict the government’s stated objective of promoting India as an international arbitration hub. Justice Bhuyan also suggested that arbitrators should voluntarily follow the latest International Bar Association guidelines on impartiality and proposed a limit on the number of arbitrations handled by an individual arbitrator at one time to ensure fairness and efficiency.
Shamshad Ali is a New Delhi–based journalist with over six years of experience spanning breaking news writing, on-the-ground reporting, and editing. When he isn’t chasing headlines, Shamshad is usually exploring new destinations, discovering hidden culinary gems, and striking up conversations with strangers. Many of whom turn out to be great sources, and even better friends.
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