S. 44B Income Tax Act | Cruise Voyages Remain Shipping Business Though Providing Entertainment & Hospitality Services : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has recently held that a foreign cruise ship operator that provides hospitality and entertainment services during a voyage would still qualify as a shipping business under Section 44B of the Income Tax Act. Thus, its taxable income would be computed on a presumptive basis at 7.5% of the specified receipts by an assessee under the provision. Dismissing the Revenue's appeal,...

IBC | PF Dues Protected, But Uncrystallised Interest & Damages Can Be Excluded From Resolution Plan : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has held that unadjudicated claims for interest and damages under the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, which had not been determined before the commencement of the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP), need not be provided for in a resolution plan approved under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC).A bench of Justice...

GST | 'ITC Available To Buyer Only If Supplier Paid Tax', Supreme Court Upholds Validity Of S. 16(2)(c) Of CGST Act

The Supreme Court has recently affirmed the Gujarat High Court's judgment, which held that the Input Tax Credit (ITC) can be availed only if the supplier has actually paid the tax to the government.A bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva dismissed a batch of petitions filed against the Gujarat High Court's judgment, which had upheld the constitutional validity of...

IBC Moratorium Against Company Doesn't Bar Consumer Complaints Against Promoters, Directors : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Monday (July 27) observed that an operation of a moratorium under the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code, 2016, against a residential project development company would not be a ground to reject the consumer complaints against its promoters/directors. “In the present case, Respondent No.1 alone is the corporate debtor against whom the CIRP has been initiated. No...

TRAI's Direction To Comply With Regulations Is Not 'Adjudication' : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Friday (July 24) held that a direction of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to comply with the provisions of the Act cannot be termed as 'adjudication' under the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997. “A direction to obey a regulation operates upon the regulated entity in the discharge of TRAI's regulatory function under Section 11(1)(b) read...

Stamp Duty On Mining Leases Based On Anticipated Royalty, Not Dead Rent : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Thursday (July 23) ruled that stamp duty payable on mining leases must be calculated based on anticipated royalty and not dead rent. Relying on the proviso to Section 26 of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, a bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Augustine George Masih dismissed the M/s. Birla Corporation Ltd. appeal against the Madhya Pradesh High Court's decision to...

Criminal Liability Can't Be Imposed On Directors Solely Due To Designation: Chhattisgarh High Court Grants Bail In CSMCL Corruption Case

The Chhattisgarh High Court has granted regular bail to two Directors of a manpower supply company arraigned in the Chhattisgarh State Marketing Corporation Limited (CSMCL) corruption case, holding that criminal liability cannot be fastened upon a person merely because of his designation as a Director. The Court observed that, unless a statute specifically creates vicarious criminal liability...

FERA Complaint Cognisance Vitiated If There Was No Notice To Accused : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Tuesday held that a Magistrate cannot validly take cognizance of a criminal complaint under the repealed Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1973 (FERA) if the mandatory "opportunity notice" required under Section 61(2) of the Act was not served upon the proposed accused.“…the service of an opportunity notice under the proviso to Section 61(2) of FERA is a...

Supreme Court Revives Over ₹16 Crore Service Tax Demand Against BPCL & HPCL For Facilitating CNG Sales For Mahanagar Gas

The Supreme Court on Monday (July 20) restored the service tax demands exceeding ₹16 Crore against the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (HPCL), who acted as 'commission agents' of the Mahanagar Gas Limited (MGL) while selling Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) through their retail outlets. Referring to the agreement, a bench of Justice Aravind...

Nominee Director Crisis Indian Law Refuses To Confront

It is July 2026, two months after the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Act, 2026 came into force. In Mumbai, in a boardroom, a director appointed by an institutional lender is looking at the agenda item that will shape a company for the next eighteen months. The emergency interim financing super-priority debt proposed in the resolution may keep the company alive. The bank that appointed him is silently preparing for a creditor-initiated insolvency resolution process. Pulling the...

Supreme Court Recommends IBC Amendment To Protect MSMEs, Says Small Operational Creditors Need Fairer Repayment Mechanism

While reaffirming the "clean slate" principle under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), the Supreme Court has called upon the Law Commission and the Legislature to examine amendments to the insolvency framework to better protect Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and other small operational creditors, observing that they are significantly disadvantaged under the existing...

Regulating Gatekeepers Across Borders: Apple-Meta Dispute And Limits Of International Competition Law

In April 2025, the European Commission (“EU”) issued its first ever fines under the Digital Markets Act (“DMA”) against Apple for violating app store obligations and €200 million against Meta over its 'pay or consent' advertising model, which required European users to either accept personalised advertising or pay for ad-free access to Facebook and Instagram. The fines followed yearlong investigations into conduct of the companies on European markets. Apple condemned the measures as coercive and...