SC urges Parl to eliminate confusion on arbitrators' power under Arbitration Act

The Supreme Court has urged Parliament to eliminate longstanding ambiguity surrounding the power of arbitral tribunals to terminate proceedings under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, and to introduce a clear statutory remedy against such termination orders.

- Utkarsh Anand

A bench of justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan on Tuesday said it was “indeed very sad” that the problem, which was born in the UNCITRAL Model Law (a template drafted by the UN to harmonise arbitration standards worldwide) adopted nearly 40 years ago, continues to persist not only under the 1996 Act but even in the proposed Arbitration and Conciliation Bill, 2024, which is meant to replace the existing law.