Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 allows a party to apply to set aside a domestic award, but only on limited grounds: incapacity of a party, an invalid arbitration agreement, lack of proper notice or inability to present one's case, an award dealing with matters outside the scope of the reference, an improperly constituted tribunal, or conflict with the public policy of India.
Courts have consistently held that Section 34 is not an appeal — a court will not reassess the merits or substitute its own view of the evidence for the tribunal's, even if it might have decided the case differently.
The application must ordinarily be filed within three months of receiving the award, extendable by a further 30 days only on sufficient cause. Missing that window generally closes the door to a challenge altogether.