Chief Engineer Of B.P.D.P./R.E.O., ... vs M/S Scoot Wilson Kirpatrick India ...

The Supreme Court held that the appeal filed under Section 37(1)(b) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 is maintainable, clarifying that this section is analogous to Section 39(1)(vi) of the Arbitration Act, 1940. The Court emphasized that an arbitral award can be set aside if the reference to arbitration is void ab initio, as established in Dharma Prathishthanam v. Madhok Construction (P) Ltd. The judgment overturned the High Court's ruling that the appeal was not maintainable, thereby allowing the appeal to proceed.