India yet to make mark in International arbitration: VP

Lamenting that India has yet to make its mark in international commercial arbitration, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday stressed the importance of broadening the scope of arbitration beyond just retired judges.

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“On self-assessment, without fear of contradiction, I can say we are nowhere. We are nowhere in the minds of people having commercial relationships with us if it is international commercial arbitration,” Dhankhar said, addressing the inaugural session of a colloquium on “International Arbitration: Indian Perspective,” organised by the India International Arbitration Centre.

The Vice President emphasised the need for domain experts in arbitration, referencing remarks by a former Chief Justice of India, who described the arbitral process in the country as an “old boys’ club.”

However, Dhankhar clarified, “I should not be misunderstood… even for a moment. Retired judges of this country are an asset to the arbitral process. They lend credibility to us. I know some of the former chief justices and judges being absolutely appreciated globally for international commercial arbitration… But there are areas where the arbitral tribunal needs to be supplemented by experts in the fields of oceanography, aviation, infrastructure and what not. And the disputes are relatable to the experience which is sectoral.”

He further pointed out that India had adopted a “myopic view” of arbitration, equating it too closely with traditional adjudication. “Unfortunately, we have taken in this country a very myopic view of arbitration as if it is adjudication. It is much beyond adjudication. It is not conventional adjudication as historically evaluated globally,” Dhankhar said.

The Vice President also discussed the misuse of Article 136, which allows a Special Leave Petition (SLP) to be filed in the Supreme Court against any judgment or order, suggesting that it was intended as a “narrow slit” but had grown too broad, negatively affecting the arbitral process.

“Article 136 intervention was supposed to be a narrow slit. The wall has been demolished with anything and everything under the sun, including what a magistrate has to do, what a session judge has to do, what a district judge has to do, what a high court judge has to do,” Dhankhar said, adding that this "wall demolition" was detrimental to arbitration.

Concluding his address, Dhankhar emphasised the importance of arbitration for micro and small industries, noting, "All I am suggesting in all humility and as the concerned citizen of this country is that the issue which you are debating is of critical importance to micro, small industries. They want a facile, easy arbitral process."