A string of amendments to the arbitration law to end delays and eliminate high costs in a bid to provide ease of doing business is being worked out by the government which is also finalising a national policy to shed its tag of being the biggest litigant.
Initial plans to bring out an ordinance to quicken things was dropped and instead a draft of the amended law could come up shortly before the Cabinet so that it can be taken up in the Monsoon session of Parliament, according to Law Minister D V Sadananda Gowda.
He said the government also wants to shed the tag of being the single biggest litigant in various courts in the country.
Law Ministry's informal estimates suggest <g data-gr-id="32">government</g> is a litigant in 46 <g data-gr-id="31">per cent</g> of the cases in higher judiciary.
Sending out a signal to international business community that prolonged arbitration proceedings in India will soon become a thing of past, Gowda told a news agency in an interview that "stringent" amendments have been proposed to the Arbitration law to end proceedings within a stipulated period and very less intervention by courts.
"Even the fee structure of the (presiding arbitrator) will be decided in the first sitting itself... now everybody apprehends that arbitration case in India will prolong for years... it will go on for a decade.
"So, now we want to see that it should be within the stipulated period and even interference of the courts should be very minimum, only unless there are certain legal problems.
<g data-gr-id="43">Fee</g> structure is an important area because almost all the arbitrators used to prolong the cases simply for no reason. So if the fees <g data-gr-id="42">is</g> fixed, they will dispose of the case," Gowda said.
The minister said the government wanted to promulgate an ordinance on Arbitration Act. "But we thought this ordinance raj issue (criticism) will come up again. For that <g data-gr-id="41">reason</g> we kept away."
The Law Ministry has moved the Cabinet note to the Prime Minister's Office. "I hope within the next one or two meetings, it will come up (before Cabinet)," he said.
He rejected suggestions that <g data-gr-id="33">delay</g> in amending the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 has sent a wrong message to the global business community.
"I don't think so. Three areas we are traversing -- the amendments to the Arbitration Act, speedy disposal of commercial matters.