Synopsis

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) challenged an arbitral award passed under Section 3G(5) of the National Highways Act, 1956, which had determined compensation for acquired land based on the highest jantri value of the village plus 5% enhancement. The Commercial Court dismissed NHAI's petition under Section 34 of the Arbitration Act. NHAI then filed an appeal under Section 37, arguing that the award was unreasoned, that evidence was ignored, and that the valuation methodology was arbitrary. The Gujarat High Court dismissed the appeal, holding that: (i) the scope of interference under Section 34 and Section 37 is extremely limited; (ii) the Arbitrator was required to determine market value under Section 26 of the Right to Fair Compensation Act, 2013 (as held in NHAI v. Nagaraju); (iii) jantri value is a valid statutory criterion; (iv) reappreciation of evidence is not permitted; and (v) the objections raised were mere disagreements on procedure and quantification, not patent illegality.

Court: High Court of Gujarat at Ahmedabad

Coram: Hon'ble the Chief Justice Mrs. Justice Sunita Agarwal and Hon'ble Mr. Justice D.N. Ray (Division Bench)

Date of Judgment: 20th April 2026

Citation: R/First Appeal No.1570 of 2026 (unreported)

Core Law: Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 – Section 37 (appeal against order under Section 34); National Highways Act, 1956 – Section 3G (compensation determination)

1.  Heading of the judgment

High court of gujarat at ahmedabad

R/first appeal no.1570 of 2026 with civil application (for stay) no.1 of 2026

National highways authority of india (appellant) vs. Jivanbhai pochabhai & ors. (respondents)

Coram: hon'ble the chief justice mrs. justice sunita agarwal and hon'ble mr. justice d.n. ray (division bench)

Date: 20th april, 2026

2. Legal framework

Major laws and provisions involved:

• Arbitration and conciliation act, 1996 – section 34 (petition to set aside arbitral award), section 37 (appeal against order under section 34), section 31(3) (requirement of reasoned award)

• National highways act, 1956 – section 3g (determination of compensation for land acquisition)

• Right to fair compensation and transparency in land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement act, 2013 – section 26 (determination of market value)

Subject matter of the judgment:

Whether an appeal under Section 37 of the Arbitration Act can be entertained against dismissal of a Section 34 petition, when the challenge is primarily based on disagreement with the valuation methodology (jantri value plus 5%) and allegations that the award is unreasoned, and what is the permissible scope of interference by the High Court in such appeals.

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