Modification Of Arbitral Awards: Supreme Court Reiterates No Interference Approach

In the recent decision of The Project Director, NHAI v. M. Hakeem and Anr., the Hon'ble Supreme Court held that a court is not empowered to modify an award under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (Arbitration Act). The present article briefly examines the findings of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the aforementioned matter.

Brief Facts

All the appeals in the instant matter concern notifications issues under the National Highways Act and arbitral awards passed thereunder. Under the National Highways Act, 1956 (National Highways Act) the competent authority determines the amount of compensation for the land acquired for constructing highways. If the parties are not satisfied with the compensation, they may file an application to refer the matter to an arbitrator who is appointed by the Central Government. In the instant matter, abysmally low amounts were granted by the competent authority which were then upheld by the arbitrator. Consequently,