What Goes Around, Comes Around: Unpacking Important Implications of the recent Supreme Court Judgement in the Antrix-Devas Deal

Abstract

This short law/ policy brief examines important legal and policy aspects of the continuously unfolding Antrix-Devas Deal Agreement (ADDA); and has been especially written as background reading material for in-service training of mid-career IAS officers at LBSNAA, Mussoorie, India.

The ADDA lies at an interesting intersection of public procurement and licensing; contract termination and procurement fraud; international arbitration and enforcement of awards; and anti-corruption reform and bilateral investment treaties. This law brief is therefore expected to precipitate in-depth discussions amongst its intended stakeholders on issues of transparency, probity and competition in award of public contracts and licenses; invocation of appropriate clauses and justifications for force majeure, termination for convenience/ default, and for annulment/ invocation of licenses; need for constant oversight and due diligence in international arbitration, dispute resolution and international enforcement of obligations; and the serious threats that carelessly crafted bilateral investment treaties as well as their ostrich-like enforcement can pose to implementation of important anti-corruption legislations worldwide.

Keywords: India, Dispute Resolution, Arbitration, Bilateral Investment Treaty, Public Procurement

JEL Classification: K12, K23