Bay of Bengal Maritime Boundary Arbitration between Bangladesh and India

On October 8, 2009, the People’s Republic of Bangladesh instituted arbitral proceedings concerning the delimitation of the maritime boundary between Bangladesh and the Republic of India pursuant to Article 287 and Annex VII, Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The Permanent Court of Arbitration acts as Registry in this arbitration.


Case information

Name(s) of Claimant(s) People's Republic of Bangladesh (State)
Name(s) of Respondent(s) Republic of India (State)
Names of Parties -
Case number 2010-16
Administering institution Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)
Case status Concluded
Type of case Inter-state arbitration
Subject matter or economic sector Maritime boundary delimitation
Procedural rules - Other -
Treaty or contract under which proceedings were commenced

Multilateral treaty
UNCLOS

Language of Proceeding -
Seat of Arbitration (by Country) Netherlands
Arbitrator(s), Conciliator(s), Other Neutral(s)

Professor Dr. Rüdiger Wolfrum (President)
Judge Thomas A. Mensah
Dr. Pemmaraju Sreenivasa Rao
Professor Ivan Shearer

Judge Jean-Pierre Cot

Representatives of the Claimant(s)

Agent

Dr. Dipu Moni MP

Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh 

 

Deputy Agent

Rear Admiral Md. Khurshed Alam (Retd)

Secretary, Maritime Affairs Unit Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh

 

Counsel and Advocates

H.E. The Honourable A.H. Mahmood Ali

MP Foreign Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh

 

Mr. Md. Shahidul Haque

Foreign Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh

 

Mr. Mohammad Shahidul Haque

Secretary, Legislative & Parliamentary Affairs Division, Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Dhaka

 

Professor Payam Akhavan

McGill University

 

Professor Alan Boyle

University of Edinburgh

 

Professor James Crawford SC, FBA

University of Cambridge

 

Mr. Lawrence H. Martin

Foley Hoag LLP

 

Mr. Paul S. Reichler

Foley Hoag LLP

 

Professor Philippe Sands QC

University College London

 

Advisors      

Mr. Shiekh Mohammed Belal

Director General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Bangladesh Ambassador-designate to the Netherlands

 

M.R.I. Abedin

System Analyst, Maritime Affairs Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

 

Mr. Mohammad Hazrat Ali Khan

Director, Maritime Affairs Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

 

Dr. Robin Cleverly

Law of the Sea Consultant, The United Kingdom Hydrographic Office

 

Mr. Scott Edmonds

Cartographic Consultant, International Mapping

 

Dr. Lindsay Parson

Director, Maritime Zone Solutions Ltd.

 

Mr. Robert W. Smith

Geographic Consultant

 

Junior Counsel         

Mrs. Clara Brillembourg

Mr. Vivek Krishnamurthy

Mr. Yuri Parkhomenko

Foley Hoag LLP

 

Mr. Remi Reichhold

Matrix Chambers

 

 

 

Representatives of the Respondent(s)

Agent

Dr. Neeru Chadha

Joint Secretary & the Legal Advisor, Ministry of External Affairs

 

Co-Agent

Mr. Harsh Vardhan Shringla

Joint Secretary (BSM), Ministry of External Affairs

 

Deputy Agent

Mr. Puneet Agrawal

Deputy Agent, Director (BSM), Ministry of External Affairs

 

Chief Counsel

H.E. Mr. G. E. Vahanvati

Attorney General of India

 

Counsel

Professor Alain Pellet

University of Paris Ouest, Nanterre-La Défense, Former Member & Chairman of the International Law Commission, Associate Member of the Institut de Droit International

 

Professor W.M. Reisman

McDougal Professor of Law, Yale University, Member of the Institut de Droit International

 

Mr. R.K.P. Shankardass

Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India, Former President, International Bar Association

 

Sir Michael Wood, K.C.M.G

Member of the English Bar, Member of the International Law Commission

 

Representatives

H.E. Mr. R.N. Prasad

Ambassador of India to the Netherlands

 

Dr. A. Sudhakara Reddy

Counsellor (Legal)

 

Junior Counsel

Mr. Devadatt Kamat

Assistant Counsel to Attorney General of India

 

Mr. Benjamin Samson

University of Paris Ouest

 

Mr. Eran Sthoeger

New York University

 

Scientific and Technical Experts

Vice Admiral S.K. Jha

Chief Hydrographer to the Government of India

 

Rear Admiral K.M. Nair

Joint Chief Hydrographer, National Hydrographic Office (NHO)

 

Prof. Martin Pratt

Expert Cartographer, Director of Research, International Boundary Research Unit (IBRU), Durham University

 

Commodore Adhir Arora

Principal Director of Hydrography, NHO

 

Captain Peush Pawsey

Director of Hydrography (Ops.), NHO

 

Dr. Dhananjay Pandey

Scientist, National Centre for Antarctic & Ocean Research (NCAOR)

 

Mr. R. C. Samota

Cartographic Assistant, NHO

 

Research Associates

Mr. K. S. Mohammed Hussain

Legal Officer, Ministry of External Affairs

 

Ms. Héloise Bajer-Pellet

Member of the Paris Bar

 

 

Representatives of the Parties
Number of Arbitrators in case 5
Date of commencement of proceeding 08 October 2009
Date of issue of final award 07 July 2014
Length of Proceedings More than 4 years
Additional notes -

Documents

Written submission
Memorial of Bangladesh, Volume I
Memorial of Bangladesh, Volume II
Memorial of Bangladesh, Volume III
Memorial of Bangladesh, Volume IV
Memorial of Bangladesh, Volume V
Counter-Memorial of India, Volume I
Counter-Memorial of India, Volume II
Reply of Bangladesh, Volume I
Reply of Bangladesh, Volume II
Reply of Bangladesh, Volume III
Rejoinder of India, Volume I
Rejoinder of India, Volume II
Rejoinder of India, Volume III
Procedural Documents
Procedural Order No.1
Procedural Order No.2
Procedural Order No.3
Procedural Order No.4
Award or other decision
Award, dated 7 July 2014
Concurring and Dissenting Opinion of Dr. P.S. Rao
Press Release
Press Release
Press Release
Press Release
Other
Rules of Procedure
Image
Photograph - Hearing Attendees
Photograph - Tribunal
Transcript/Minutes
Hearing Transcript Day 1
Hearing Transcript Day 2
Hearing Transcript Day 3
Hearing Transcript Day 4
Hearing Transcript Day 5
Hearing Transcript Day 6