In Antrix Corporation Ltd v. Devas Multimedia Private Limited,^[1] the Delhi High Court (‘DHC’) set aside an arbitral award passed in favour of Devas Multimedia Private Limited (‘Devas’) by the International Chambers of Commerce against Antrix Corporation Ltd on the grounds of patent illegality, contravention of public policy, and fraud. The DHC noted that the NCLT had passed an order of liquidation of Devas inter alia on the ground that the company was formed for fraudulent purpose, which was upheld by the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal and the SC. In light of the same, the DHC held that disputes, arbitral award etc, stemming from an underlying fraudulent transaction are infected with fraud. The DHC further held that the findings of the SC establish that the arbitral award was in contravention of the fundamental policy of Indian law and most basic notions of morality and justice and contrary to national economic interest i.e., the Foreign Investment Promotion Board Policies, the provisions of Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 and the PMLA, and thus antithetical to the fundamental policy of Indian law.

[1] Antrix Corporation Ltd v. Devas Multimedia Private Limited, 2022 SCC OnLine Del 2622.