By Binny Yadav
In a decisive act of judicial correction, the Supreme Court recently overturned what it described as an unwarranted intervention by the Patna High Court—one that threatened the architecture of autonomy and restraint underpinning India’s arbitration framework. By reinstating the arbitral process in the long-running dispute between Hindustan Construction Company Ltd (HCC) and Bihar Rajya Pul Nirman Nigam Ltd (BRPNNL), the apex court made explicit that the boundaries Parliament has drawn around judicial power in arbitration are structural obligations, not flexible guidelines.
The High Court’s decision to “pause” an arbitration it had itself initiated under Section 11 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, was more than a procedural misstep. It echoed a deeper reflex: the belief that courts remain the natural custodians of all disputes, even those statutorily diverted to arbitration.
The Supreme Court’s intervention, therefore, was not a mere supervisory correction—it was an emphatic reminder that the judiciary must respect the finality it creates.
SECTION 11 AND THE EDGES OF JUDICIAL POWER
At the heart of the judgment lies a principle the Court has reiterated for years: once a court appoints an arbitrator under Section 11, it becomes functus officio.
The gatekeeping function ends once the court is satisfied that an arbitration agreement exists. The closure is complete, not provisional. “Once the appointment was made, the court became functus officio and could not sit in judgment over the very issue it had already settled,” the Supreme Court reaffirmed.
The Patna High Court’s attempt to revisit its Section 11 order months later directly contradicted this statutory design.
By holding that the High Court lacked jurisdiction to reopen the matter, the Supreme Court reinforced what practitioners have long argued: any post-appointment interference dilutes arbitral integrity.
As the Court observed, “Section 11(6) does not confer any revisional or appellate power to re-adjudicate issues already settled.”
SECTION 15: THE STATUTORY SAFETY NET THAT COURTS OVERLOOK
Equally significant is the Court’s reaffirmation of Section 15, a provision often overshadowed in adjudicatory debates. Section 15 provides a simple, resilient pathway when an arbitrator becomes unable to act: appoint a substitute who continues the proceedings “from the stage already reached”. This mechanism prevents arbitrations from collapsing due to personnel changes.
By stalling the proceedings instead of triggering substitution, the Patna High Court inadvertently introduced fragility where the statute mandates continuity.
The Supreme Court’s directive to appoint a substitute arbitrator under Sections 15(1) and 15(2) thus restored the self-contained logic of the Act.
A BROADER COMMENTARY ON JUDICIAL CULTURE
What elevates this judgment beyond doctrinal clarity is the conversation it reopens about judicial culture.
Despite legislative reforms and repeated Supreme Court pronouncements, a residual “judicial gravitational pull” persists—an instinct to draw arbitrations back into court whenever uncertainty arises.
The Patna High Court’s intervention exemplified this legacy mindset: arbitration treated not as an autonomous process, but as a delegation subject to judicial recall.
The Supreme Court’s tone signals growing impatience with this habit. True institutional reform, the judgment suggests, requires behavioural change across the judiciary, not merely statutory amendment.
WHY THE JUDGMENT MATTERS
1. Restoring Certainty And Finality
Arbitration depends on predictability. If courts can revisit Section 11 orders, the gatekeeping stage becomes a revolving door. The Supreme Court’s ruling shuts that door firmly.
2. Reinforcing Procedural Continuity
Large infrastructure arbitrations span years. Judicial pauses add cost, delay, and tactical advantages. Emphasising substitution under Section 15 keeps proceedings moving.
3. Boosting International Credibility
India’s ambition to match global arbitral hubs requires unwavering respect for arbitral autonomy. This judgment aligns Indian practice with international standards of non-intervention.
4. Protecting Against Strategic Litigation By State Entities
With many arbitrations involving PSUs, the ruling curbs attempts to use courts as strategic speed breakers.
A QUIET REASSERTION OF DISCIPLINE
Ultimately, the judgment is a subtle yet decisive assertion that arbitration is not an adjunct to litigation. It is an autonomous mechanism with its own checks, continuity, and logic.
If Section 11 is the gate, the Court has clarified that once crossed, it closes. If Section 15 is the safety net, it exists to prevent judicial re-entry, not invite it.
“Arbitration is often a friend in conferences but a foe in practice… its true advantage lies in its freedom and flexibility, with party autonomy at its core,” the Court noted.
As India aspires to global standards of dispute resolution, the success of arbitration will hinge not just on statutory text, but on judicial temperament. This judgment may well be remembered as a quiet turning point—a moment when the Supreme Court signalled its readiness to trust the very process it was designed to support.
—The writer is a New Delhi-based journalist, lawyer and trained mediator
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