The Delhi branch of the Nani Palkhivala Arbitration Centre (NPAC) was inaugurated on Friday. This is NPAC’s second branch, the first being in Chennai..The inauguration ceremony was held at Delhi’s India International Centre, in the presence of several eminent jurists..In attendance was Chief Guest of the evening, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul of the Supreme Court. Former Chief Justice of India and a member of the Governing Council of the NPAC Justice MN Venkatachaliah also attended the ceremony..The evening saw special addresses by Fali S Nariman, CEO of NITI Aayog Amitabh Kant, Former Delhi High Court Chief Justice AP Shah and Justice Kaul. The underlying theme of all the speeches was the importance of promoting arbitration in India..Fali Nariman paid tribute to Nani Palkhivala as the “greatest constitutional lawyer in the post-constitution period.” Nariman even recalled three of India’s biggest Constitutional cases – Golaknath, Kesavananda Bharati, and Minerva Mills – all of which were “convincingly argued and won by Nani Palkhivala”. Nariman ended his address by congratulating the team behind NPAC for naming the arbitration centre after Palkhivala, and said,.“In these troublesome times, we can do no better than remembering and paying our tribute to the lawyer who saved the Constitution when it needed to be saved.” .Amitabh Kant then took the stage to deliver his special address. Kant spoke about effective measures needed to make India a desirable arbitration centre on a global scale. He was hopeful that NPAC will help towards institutionalising the arbitration process. Kant also spoke about scaling up the use of technology in arbitration, and hoped that with top class infrastructure, India will soon be seen and established as a competent arbitration hub..Justice Kaul stressed on the importance of arbitration and the role the judiciary and the Bar have to play in making arbitration an institutionalized process in India. He said,.“ The Indian Judicial system is going through a critical phase for more reasons than one…but that is a story for another day.” .Justice Kaul, however, added that his address today was about how to make arbitration a more practical and feasible mechanism for settlement of disputes. He highlighted that the judiciary was burdened with a large volume of litigation, and that there was a pressing need for an alternate dispute resolution method..“Indian Judiciary is like a clogged artery of the heart that needs a bypass”, Justice Kaul remarked..Justice Kaul opined that with a large number of industrial and business cases coming up before the courts, arbitration is certainly the need of the hour. He also noted that if the dispute resolution process is not complementary to the process of doing business, then India will be unable to rise as a preferred destination for global business..He added that to promote arbitration as a preferred method of redressal and dispute resolution, centres of international standard will have to be set up. He also spoke of the need for a dedicated Bar to promote arbitration as an institutionalized process that can be preferred over litigation..Justice Kaul’s thoughts were echoed by Justice AP Shah, who also highlighted the need for a dedicated Bar in making arbitration a more streamlined and institutionalized process. Justice Shah also said that arbitration does not take away the jurisdiction of the courts, but merely helps in speedy redressal of disputes..He emphasized on the importance of a speedy and competent arbitration process in India to make sure that India is chosen as a seat of arbitration globally..Senior Advocate Arvind Datar concluded the ceremony with a vote of thanks to all the guests and the panel members. He said that the mission of the NPAC “is to make institutional arbitration the norm when it comes dispute resolution.”
The Delhi branch of the Nani Palkhivala Arbitration Centre (NPAC) was inaugurated on Friday. This is NPAC’s second branch, the first being in Chennai..The inauguration ceremony was held at Delhi’s India International Centre, in the presence of several eminent jurists..In attendance was Chief Guest of the evening, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul of the Supreme Court. Former Chief Justice of India and a member of the Governing Council of the NPAC Justice MN Venkatachaliah also attended the ceremony..The evening saw special addresses by Fali S Nariman, CEO of NITI Aayog Amitabh Kant, Former Delhi High Court Chief Justice AP Shah and Justice Kaul. The underlying theme of all the speeches was the importance of promoting arbitration in India..Fali Nariman paid tribute to Nani Palkhivala as the “greatest constitutional lawyer in the post-constitution period.” Nariman even recalled three of India’s biggest Constitutional cases – Golaknath, Kesavananda Bharati, and Minerva Mills – all of which were “convincingly argued and won by Nani Palkhivala”. Nariman ended his address by congratulating the team behind NPAC for naming the arbitration centre after Palkhivala, and said,.“In these troublesome times, we can do no better than remembering and paying our tribute to the lawyer who saved the Constitution when it needed to be saved.” .Amitabh Kant then took the stage to deliver his special address. Kant spoke about effective measures needed to make India a desirable arbitration centre on a global scale. He was hopeful that NPAC will help towards institutionalising the arbitration process. Kant also spoke about scaling up the use of technology in arbitration, and hoped that with top class infrastructure, India will soon be seen and established as a competent arbitration hub..Justice Kaul stressed on the importance of arbitration and the role the judiciary and the Bar have to play in making arbitration an institutionalized process in India. He said,.“ The Indian Judicial system is going through a critical phase for more reasons than one…but that is a story for another day.” .Justice Kaul, however, added that his address today was about how to make arbitration a more practical and feasible mechanism for settlement of disputes. He highlighted that the judiciary was burdened with a large volume of litigation, and that there was a pressing need for an alternate dispute resolution method..“Indian Judiciary is like a clogged artery of the heart that needs a bypass”, Justice Kaul remarked..Justice Kaul opined that with a large number of industrial and business cases coming up before the courts, arbitration is certainly the need of the hour. He also noted that if the dispute resolution process is not complementary to the process of doing business, then India will be unable to rise as a preferred destination for global business..He added that to promote arbitration as a preferred method of redressal and dispute resolution, centres of international standard will have to be set up. He also spoke of the need for a dedicated Bar to promote arbitration as an institutionalized process that can be preferred over litigation..Justice Kaul’s thoughts were echoed by Justice AP Shah, who also highlighted the need for a dedicated Bar in making arbitration a more streamlined and institutionalized process. Justice Shah also said that arbitration does not take away the jurisdiction of the courts, but merely helps in speedy redressal of disputes..He emphasized on the importance of a speedy and competent arbitration process in India to make sure that India is chosen as a seat of arbitration globally..Senior Advocate Arvind Datar concluded the ceremony with a vote of thanks to all the guests and the panel members. He said that the mission of the NPAC “is to make institutional arbitration the norm when it comes dispute resolution.”
