Published on: 12 September 2023 at 14:47 IST
Court: Supreme Court of India
Citation: DLF Home Developers Limited V. Rajapura Homes (2021)
Honourable Supreme Court of India has held that the High Court cannot appoint an arbitrator under aegis of Section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 where the arbitration agreement does not cover the dispute. It is held that the High Court shall endeavour to evaluate whether there exists a written agreement between the parties for resolution of disputes through arbitration.
20. To say it differently, this Court or a High Court, as the case may be, are not expected to act mechanically merely to deliver a purported dispute raised by an applicant at the doors of the chosen Arbitrator. On the contrary, the Court(s) are obliged to apply their mind to the core preliminary issues, albeit, within the framework of Section 11(6-A) of the Act. Such a review, as already clarified by this Court, is not intended to usurp the jurisdiction of the Arbitral Tribunal but is aimed at streamlining the process of arbitration. Therefore, even when an arbitration agreement exists, it would not prevent the Court to decline a prayer for reference if the dispute in question does not correlate to the said agreement.
Drafted By Abhijit Mishra