Contracts, institutions must ensure infrastructure disputes do not escalate and disrupt projects: CJI Surya Kant

Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant on Monday said that disagreements arising from infrastructure projects should be addressed at an early stage, before they disrupt projects and develop into legal disputes.

He called for India’s infrastructure ecosystem to shift from “retrospective justice”, which resolves disputes after the damage has occurred, to “preventive justice”, under which contracts and institutions are designed to prevent disagreements from escalating.

"What our infrastructure ecosystem therefore needs is a shift from retrospective justice to preventive justice," the CJI said.

CJI Kant was delivering the keynote address at the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) Global Infrastructure Conference 2026 in New Delhi.

“The rule of law is not just about correcting the wrong but also about creating conditions where things go right,” he said.

The CJI explained that infrastructure contracts should clearly define the parties’ obligations and powers, distribute risks fairly and establish credible mechanisms for resolving disagreements promptly.

“A bridge cannot pause construction while an arbitration proceeds. A highway cannot wait for an appeal to run its course and a power project cannot suspend its economic purpose while the parties debate the meaning of a force majeure clause,” he said.

CJI Kant added that early intervention, open communication and swift decisions could prevent disagreements from turning into formal legal claims.

“The finest compliment to a dispute resolution mechanism is not that it has resolved many disputes, but that the project it served had so little need to use it,” he said.