The Supreme Court has modified an order from the Bombay High Court, providing relief to the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL) regarding the deposit of an arbitral award. The modification means that MMRCL is no longer required to deposit the full ₹250.82 crore upfront to stay the arbitral award.

The Bombay High Court had previously directed MMRCL to deposit ₹250 crore awarded to the L&T–STEC joint venture. This directive followed a June 2025 arbitral tribunal order that instructed MMRCL to pay the substantial sum to L&T–STEC, a company that was responsible for designing and constructing tunnels and stations for the Mumbai metro rail network.

The dispute between MMRCL and L&T–STEC arose from a contract awarded in May 2015, prior to the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Act in 2017. After the introduction of GST, the companies agreed to a "change in law" clause to account for its impact. MMRCL subsequently sought reimbursement from L&T–STEC, citing the impact of the change in law and compensation for additional work related to installing stronger earth-retaining structures. L&T–STEC contested this claim, leading to the arbitration.

In June 2025, the arbitral tribunal ruled, by majority decision, that MMRCL should pay ₹250.82 crore to L&T–STEC. This amount included ₹229.56 crore for GST reimbursement between July 1, 2017, and September 30, 2022, and ₹21.26 crore for additional work outside the original contract scope. One arbitrator, nominated by MMRCL, dissented, arguing that L&T–STEC should refund ₹27.09 lakh to MMRCL, as the GST Act only required a reimbursement of ₹134.42 crore.

The Bombay High Court upheld the arbitral tribunal's order in October 2025, stating that the award was neither "facially untenable" nor "undermined by patent illegalities". Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan directed MMRCL to deposit the full amount within eight weeks, allowing L&T–STEC to withdraw the funds along with any accruals, provided they offered an unconditional bank guarantee for the same amount. MMRCL then sought an unconditional stay on the award without needing to deposit the amount, which was denied by the High Court.

The Supreme Court's recent modification provides conditional relief to MMRCL. While the corporation doesn't have to deposit the entire ₹250.82 crore upfront, it must provide an undertaking detailing its properties. Furthermore, MMRCL must commit to paying the full amount within eight weeks if L&T–STEC ultimately prevails in the matter.