GOVERNMENT OF INDIA versus 1.VEDANTA LIMITED (FORMERLY CAIRN INDIA LTD.) 2. RAVVA OIL (SINGAPORE) PTE. LTD. 3. VIDEOCON INDUSTRIES LIMITED

Citation: [2020] 12 S.C.R. 1 · Decided: 16-09-2020 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: S. ABDUL NAZEER, INDU MALHOTRA, ANIRUDDHA BOSE · Disposal: Dismissed

Cited by 4 judgment(s) · cites 18 · see the full citation network in Lexace

Judgment (excerpt)

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[2020] 12 S.C.R. 1
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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
v.
1. VEDANTA LIMITED (FORMERLY CAIRN INDIA LTD.)
2. RAVVA OIL (SINGAPORE) PTE. LTD.
3. VIDEOCON INDUSTRIES LIMITED
(Civil Appeal No. 3185 of 2020)
SEPTEMBER 16, 2020
[S. ABDUL NAZEER, INDU MALHOTRA AND
ANIRUDDHA BOSE, JJ.]
Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 – ss.47 and 49 –
Foreign award – Limitation for filing enforcement/execution petition
for enforcement of a foreign award – Held: Period of limitation for
filing a petition for enforcement of a foreign award u/ss.47 and 49,
would be governed by Art.137 of the Limitation Act, which prescribes
a period of three years from when the right to apply accrues –
Limitation Act, 1963 – Art. 137.
Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 – ss. 44, 46, 47 and
48 – Scheme of the Act for enforcement of New York Convention
awards – Held: Part II Chapter 1 of the Act, pertains to enforcement
of New York Convention awards – The enforcement Court cannot
set aside a foreign award, even if the conditions u/s.48 are made
out – Power to set aside a foreign award vests only with the court at
the seat of arbitration, since supervisory or primary jurisdiction is
exercised by the curial courts at the seat of arbitration –The
enforcement court is not to correct the errors in the award u/s.48,
or undertake a review on the merits of the award, but is conferred
with the limited power to “refuse” enforcement, if the grounds are
made out – If the Court is satisfied that the application u/s.48 is
without merit, and the foreign award is found to be enforceable,
then u/s.49, the award shall be deemed to be a decree of “that Court”
– Limited purpose of the legal fiction is enforcement of the foreign
award – New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement
of Foreign Awards, 1958 – Arts. IV & V.
Arbitration – Foreign award – Limitation for enforcement /
execution of a foreign award – Lex fori – Held: The issue of
limitation for enforcement of foreign awards being procedural in
nature, is subject to the lex fori i.e. the law of the forum (State)
where the foreign award is sought to be enforced.
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2020] 12 S.C.R.
Arbitration – Arbitral award – Foreign award – Limitation
period for filing the enforcement / execution petition for enforcement
of a foreign award in India – Held:  Would be governed by Indian
law – The Indian Arbitration Act, 1996 does not specify any period
of limitation for filing an application for enforcement / execution of
a foreign award – s.43 however provides that the Limitation Act,
1963 shall apply to arbitrations, as it applies to proceedings in
court – Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 – s.43 – Limitation
Act, 1963.
Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 – s.36 – Award in
arbitral proceeding – Domestic award – Statutory fiction created
u/s.36 for limited purpose of enforcement of a ‘domestic award’ as
a decree of the court – Held: By deeming fiction, a domestic award
is deemed to be a decree of the court, even though it is as such not
a decree passed by a civil court – The deeming fiction is restricted
to treat the award as a decree of the court for the purposes of
execution, even though it is, as a matter of fact, only an award in
an arbitral proceeding.
Arbitration – Foreign award – Held: Foreign awards are not
decrees of an Indian civil court – By a legal fiction, s.49 provides
that a foreign award, after it is granted recognition and enforcement
u/s.48, would be deemed to be a decree of “that Court” for the
limited purpose of enforcement – The phrase “that Court” refers to
the Court which has adjudicated upon the petition filed u/ss.47
and 49 for enforcement of the foreign award – Art.136 of the
Limitation Act would not be applicable for the enforcement /
execution of a foreign award, since it is not a decree of a civil court
in India –  Limitation Act, 1963 – Art. 136 – Arbitration and
Conciliation Act, 1996 – ss.47, 48 and 49 – Legal Fiction.
Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 – Foreign award –
Applicable law at the enforcement stage – Held: Enforcement court
does not sit in appeal over the findings of the seat court –
Enforcement of the award is a subsequent and distinct proceeding
from the setting aside proceedings at the seat – The enforcement
court would independently determine the issue of recognition and
enforceability of the foreign award in India, in accordance with the
provisions of Chapter 1 Part II of the Indian Arbitration Act, 1996
– On facts, the M

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