The Delhi High Court has referred disputes between Sharad Quench Private Limited and the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to arbitration and appointed former Finance Director Harish Chandra as the Sole Arbitrator to adjudicate the parties’ claims.
The dispute arose from demand notices issued by IRCTC seeking recovery of amounts allegedly towards Input Tax Credit (ITC). Sharad Quench had approached the Court under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, seeking protection against the recovery measures.
In an interim order dated May 4, 2026, the High Court had restrained IRCTC from taking coercive steps towards recovery of the alleged ITC amounts after observing that a prima facie case existed and the underlying disputes required adjudication. The Court had also taken note of the petitioner’s contention that payments due under ongoing commercial transactions had been withheld.
When the matter came up again, both parties agreed that the disputes could be referred to arbitration. Accepting the consensus, Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar appointed Harish Chandra, Ex-Director Finance, as Sole Arbitrator and directed that the Section 9 petition be treated as an application under Section 17 of the Act for consideration by the arbitral tribunal. Thus, the Court dispensed with the statutory requirement of filing a separate Section 11 application and referred the disputes to arbitration.
The Court further clarified that the interim protection granted on May 4 restraining coercive recovery would continue until the Sole Arbitrator takes up the Section 17 application for consideration.
All rights and contentions of the parties were left open to be decided on the merits in arbitration.
