M/S. S AND P INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPERS PVT. LTD. AND ORS. vs UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.

Judgment text excerpt

$~90 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI + W.P.(C) 5401/2026 Date of Decision: 22.04.2026 IN THE MATTER OF: M/S. S AND P INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPERS PVT. LTD. AND ORS. .....Petitioners Through: Mr. Kunal Malik, Mr. Lokendra Singh, Mr. Subhash Chandra Pandey, Mr. C. S. Panda, Mr. Mudit Sharma, Advs. versus UNION OF INDIA AND ORS. .....Respondents Through: Ms. Iram Majid, Adv. Mr. Santosh Kumar, Standing Counsel and Mr. Adithya Ramani Advocate for NHAI. CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE PURUSHAINDRA KUMAR KAURAV JUDGEMENT 1. The present petition has been filed seeking to quash the arbitration clause in the tender documents issued by the respondents. The arbitration clause in question requires all disputes between the parties to be settled through the Rules of the Society for Affordable Redressal of Disputes (Hereinafter referred to as „SAROD rules‟). Under the SAROD framework, for the appointment of arbitrators, the parties must choose only from the empanelled list of arbitrators maintained by SAROD. 2. The petitioners are stated to be infrastructure development companies Signature Not Verified Signature Not Verified Signed By:NEHA CHOPRA Signed Signing Date:05.05.2026 By:PURUSHAINDRA 17:18:58 KUMAR KAURAV that regularly bid on tenders issued by the respondent no.2 (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways), respondent no.3/National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) and other similar entities. These companies generally undertake projects for upgrading, rehabilitation and widening of National Highways. 3. The grievance of the petitioners is with regard to the neutrality and impartiality of the arbitration process under the SAROD rules. It is contended that mandating arbitration exclusively under the SAROD framework, and requiring the parties to choose arbitrators only from the p