Delhi HC rejects Future Group's plea to terminate arbitration proceedings before SIAC

Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismissed Future Group's plea seeking termination of the arbitration proceedings initiated by Amazon before SIAC.

Justice C Hari Shankar said that he has not expressed any opinion on the merits of the arguments raised by the parties and the arbitration before the Singapore International Arbitration Court (SIAC) will continue.

Amazon, on November 17, had moved the Supreme Court for allowing arbitration proceedings to restart at the SIAC.

At that hearing, representing Amazon NV Investment Holding LLC, senior counsel Gopal Subramaniam had pointed out how Future Group was trying to stall the proceedings.

“You (Future group and others) cannot keep stultifying the proceeding before the arbitral tribunal and this is just a ploy to delay the proceeding. These are all ploys by well-heeled parties to delay the arbitration proceeding. Your client is trying to be too clever by half,” a bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices Hima Kohli and J B Pardiwala said.

Justice Chandrachud said he was “concerned” as the CJI due to the claim made that there was “rule of law” prevailing in the country. “You can in any case challenge the final award to be passed in the arbitral proceedings,” the bench said, making clear “we will make sure that the arbitral proceedings go on.” The Delhi High Court had recently reserved its verdict on a batch of pleas on the ongoing legal tussle between Amazon and the Future Group over Future Retail Ltd's (FRL) Rs 24,731 crore merger deal with Reliance Retail.