Case:- M/S R. K. TRANSPORT COMPANY vs M/S BHARAT ALUMINUM COMPANY LTD.
Citation:- 2025 INSC 438
Bench:- Justice P.S. Narasimha and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra
The Supreme Court held that the three-month limitation period under Section 34(3) of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996 (“Arbitration Act”) for challenging an arbitral award should not be rigidly interpreted as exactly 90 days, rather it should be interpreted as three calendar months.
Key Takeaways:-
- The Hon’ble Supreme Court held that the limitation period to challenge the arbitral award is 3 calendar months and not rigid 90 days under Section 34(3) of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996.
- Further, the Hon’ble Court went ahead and said that if the last day of the limitation to challenge the arbitral award falls on a court holiday, then the filing on the next working day is valid according to the Limitation Act, 1963.
- In the present case, the arbitral award was rendered on 09.04.2022 and the challenge was made on 11.07.2022. The Limitation Period started from 10.04.2022 to 09.07.2022, which was a second Saturday when the court was not working. The challenge was filed on the next working day of the court which is 11.07.2022, and the Hon’ble Court held that it is well within the limitation period.
