Vice President of India Jagdeep Dhankar on Saturday remarked that India's fast paced growth may have made it one of the most aspirational nations in the world but it has not been accompanied by development of the arbitration sector. .The Vice President (VP) said that from his experience as a member of the ICC International Court of Arbitration, he can see that India has not made its mark in the international arbitration arena when compared to countries like Dubai and Singapore. "On self assessment, without fear of contradiction, I can say we are nowhere. We are nowhere in the minds of people having commercial relationships with us if it is international commercial arbitration," he said.He opined that to establish the credibility of arbitration, India must overcome the control exerted on the arbitration environment by a segment of arbitrators. That control, he said, comes from the judiciary itself."Arbitrators play as much critical role as members of the bar associated with the arbitral process. Surprisingly, there is, I am saying it with utmost restraint, absolute tight fist control of a segment of a category that is involved with arbitral process determination. And this tight fist control emanates out of judicial feats. And if we examine it on an objective platform, it is excruciatingly painful. This country has rich human resource in every facet. ...Unfortunately, we have taken in this country a very myopic view of arbitration as if it is adjudication. It is much beyond adjudication. It is not conventional adjudication as historically evaluated globally,” he said.While retired judges are an asset to arbitral process, it is time to look at experts in the field to supplement them."Retired judges of this country are assets to arbitral process. I know some of them being appreciated. But there are areas where arbitral tribunal need to be supplemented with experts....Time for us to navigate from step by step from alternative resolution to amicable resolution. Let us convert it from dispute to difference resolution. Let us get into consensual convergence," the Vice President stated..Retired judges of this country are assets to arbitral process. But there are areas where arbitral tribunal need to be supplemented with expertsVice President Jagdeep Dhankar.The Vice President was speaking at the inaugural session of a colloquium on “International Arbitration: Indian Perspective” organised by India International Arbitration Centre.If any country needs to have a strong system of alternate dispute resolution, it is one that is growing at unprecedented rates like India, the VP added."If any country needs smoothest of judicial process, it is India. We are country on the rise and it is unstoppable. There is exponential economic upsurge, India has transformed to the 5th largest economy. We have 8% growth. You can see the change from the decade ago. The development has converted India into the most aspirational nation in the world. Every economic activity will have disputes and differences. In this situation it is very significant that we focus on adjudication. Now is the time to emerge as a global dispute resolution centre.".However, arbitral process in our country is just an additional burden to the normal hierarchical mechanism of adjudication he said, explaining why arbitration has not taken off in India..Pertinently, he opined that Article 136 of the Constitution of India, which grants the Supreme Court discretionary powers to entertain appeals, may be hurting the arbitration process as well. “The Attorney General of the country can really reflect and make a big change. Which country in the world, Attorney tell me, has suo moto cognisance by the highest court? I am sure I can't look around. And Article 136 intervention was supposed to be a narrow-slit. The wall has been demolished with anything and everything under the sun, including what a magistrate has to do, what a Session Judge has to do, what a District Judge has to do, what a High Court Judge has to do. That wall demolition is also hurting arbitral process. All I am suggesting in all humility and as the concerned citizen of this country that the issue which you are debating is of critical importance to micro, small industries. They want facile, easy arbitral process,” the VP said. .Attorney General R Venkataramani and retired Supreme Court Justice Hemant Gupta were also present at the event..Justice Gupta also spoke at the event, focusing on the seeming preference for foreign seated arbitration.Justice Gupta opined that insisting on arbitration clauses that opt for arbitrations in India, combined with more marketing of the field, may help to address the issue to some extent."Institutional arbitrations have not been given priority. We need to change eco system so that parties opt for institutional arbitration. India is a developing country but foreign collaborators insist on foreign seated arbitrations. In SIAC only 3% arbitrators are Indians but 50% of work comes from India. We should insist on arbitration clause to opt for arbitrations in India. Other institutions do marketing, for lack of self-confidence or otherwise we are not in the league with these institutions," Justice Gupta said. .Attorney General R Venkataramani said that there are constant discussions between lawyers on what courts and the government are not doing right but legal practitioners need to be able to register their concerns. "Not a day passes in the corridors of legal practitioners on what the government or courts are doing wrong or what they should be doing correctly. We want to register our concerns. We are poised to take the next step with clarity, with a government that has open ears we only need to write good scripts...Hopefully an International framework may also emerge soon. The arbitration bar of India is a step towards institutionalisation. The Make in India movement needs the support of Made in India law", the AG said.
