As the UK-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is signed, campaigners have warned a soon-to-be-announced parallel treaty could contain provisions which would allow corporations investing in both countries the power to sue the British and Indian Governments.
The UK-India bilateral investment treaty (BIT) will accompany the new Free Trade Agreement which was announced on May 6.
The parallel investment treaty contains the controversial Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism according to inside sources who spoke to Reuters. The ISDS has been dubbed a system of “corporate courts” by campaigners.
Previously, India terminated a large number of its BITs after facing several ISDS claims. Of a total of 30 cases India has faced, eight were raised by UK corporations under the previous 1994 India-UK BIT, which was terminated by India in 2017.
