The arbitral tribunal in exercise of their power can very well interpret the implied terms or fill gaps where the contract is silent, so long as doing so does not contradict any express term
The Hon’ble Supreme Court in Ramesh Kumar Jain v. Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (BALCO) (Neutral Citation: 2025 INSC 1457) observed that “..........It is a fundamental principle that the arbitrator cannot award anything that is contrary to the contract. The arbitrator is bound by clear stipulations inter se the parties, and an award ignoring such stipulations would violate public policy by undermining freedom of contract. However, that does not mean that not every award which gives a benefit not expressly mentioned in the contract is in violation. The arbitral tribunal in exercise of their power can very well interpret the implied terms or fill gaps where the contract is silent, so long as doing so does not contradict any express term. ..........”
