Broad arbitration clause covered lease-rent dispute, so the Section 8 applications should have been allowed.

A dispute over sharing of lease rent from project space, founded on the development agreements and addendum, fell within the parties' arbitration clause because Clause 19 covered disputes arising out of, in connection with, or relating to the agreement. The sub-clauses only prescribed different procedural arrangements depending on the category of dispute and did not narrow that broad coverage. The SC held that the claim was sufficiently connected with the contractual arrangements and therefore arbitrable, so the applications under Section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 should have been allowed.

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Issues: Whether the dispute concerning sharing of lease rent was covered by the arbitration clause in the addendum and whether the applications under Section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 ought to have been allowed.

Analysis: The dispute related to distribution of lease rent from the project space and was founded on the development agreements, supplementary development agreements and the addendum. Clause 19 applied to any dispute arising out of, in connection with, or relating to the agreement, and sub-clauses (c), (d) and (e) only provided different procedural arrangements depending on the category of dispute. The Court held that the respondents' claim was sufficiently connected with the agreements and therefore fell within the arbitration clause.

Conclusion: The dispute was arbitrable and the applications under Section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 should have been allowed.

Ratio Decidendi: A dispute claiming rights under and arising in connection with a development agreement and its addendum must be referred to arbitration where the arbitration clause broadly covers disputes arising out of, in connection with, or relating to the agreement.

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