A recent decision of the Supreme Court of India (SC) in The Project Director, National Highways No. 45E and 220, National Highways Authority of India v. M. Hakeem & Anr.[ 2021 SCC OnLine SC 473] (NHAI v M. Hakeem) has settled a crucial point of law under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (1996 Act). The SC clarified that the power of a court to set aside an arbitral award under section 34 of the 1996 Act does not include the power to modify or vary the arbitral award. While the decision is unassailable, the implications thereof are worth considering. Economic Laws Practice, a leading arbitration law firm in India , throws light on these implications. In NHAI v M. Hakeem, several arbitral awards were passed by various arbitrators whereby landowners were compensated at various rates per square meter for the lands acquired by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for the purposes of construction of highways. The Respondents challenged these awards under section 34 ...