In a recent decision passed by the Supreme Court (‘SC’) on October 4, 2016 in the case of A. Ayyasamy v. A Parmasivam,[1] it was held that a dispute will not be rendered as non arbitrable because of mere allegations of fraud simplicitor, and distinguished it from serious fraud allegations.Sections 34(2)(b) and 48(2) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (‘Arbitration Act’), inter alia, provide that an arbitral award may be set aside if the Court finds that the “subject matter of the dispute is not capable of settlement by arbitration under the law for the time being in force”.While the Arbitration Act does not specify the kinds of cases that are not arbitrable, in a number of its previous judgments, the SC has specified examples of certain kinds of disputes that are not arbitrable. In Booz Allen and Hamilton Inc. v. SBI Home Finance Limited and Others,[2] the SC held that the following matters were not arbitrable: (i) disputes relating to rights and liabilities that give rise to or arise out of criminal offences; (ii) matrimonial disputes relating to divorce, judicial separation, restitution of conjugal rights and child custody; (iii) guardianship matters; (iv) insolvency and winding up matters; (v) testamentary matters (grant of probate, letters of administration and succession certificate); and (vi) eviction or tenancy matters governed by special statutes.The SC in the present judgement, clarified that a mere allegation of fraud simplicitor may not constitute grounds to nullify the effect of the arbitration agreement between the parties, and listed examples of serious allegations of fraud that would render a dispute non arbitrable, such as: (i) serious allegations of forgery or fabrication of documents in support of the plea of fraud; (ii) where fraud is alleged against the arbitration provision itself; and (iii) where the fraud is of such a nature that it permeates the entire contract, including the agreement to arbitrate, i.e., where fraud goes to the validity of the contract itself – either the entire contract that contains the arbitration clause or the validity of the arbitration clause itself.The SC held that it is only in cases where there would be a serious issue of fraud involving criminal wrongdoing that the exception to arbitrability carved out in N. Radhakrishnan v. Maestro Engineers[3] would apply. In cases involving allegations of fraud simplicitor, the arbitration clause need not be avoided and that the parties can be relegated to arbitration.[1]     A. Ayyasamy v. A Parmasivam., AIR 2016 SC 4675.[2]     Booz Allen and Hamilton Inc. v. SBI Home Finance Limited and Others, 2011 5 SCC 532.[3]     N. Radhakrishnan v. Maestro Engineers, 2010 1 SCC 72.