Madras High Court Rejects MSME's Interest Claim Under MSMED Act In Absence Of Contract

The Madras High Court has dismissed an MSME's claim for interest under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006, holding that such interest cannot be awarded where the claim arises as compensation under Section 70 of the Contract Act and not from a contractual debt Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy, in a judgment delivered on April 01, 2026, held that, “In any event, the plaintiff cannot claim interest on compounded basis with monthly rests, whether by invoking Section 16 of...

Exclusion Of EWS/LIG Allottees From Housing Society Violates Articles 14, 21 Of The Constitution: Telangana High Court

The Telangana High Court has held that a housing society that excludes economically weaker sections (EWS) and lower-income group (LIG) allottees is unsustainable in law. It observed that excluding such allottees from access to common facilities is violative of the principle of equality under Article 14 and undermines their right to dignified living under Article 21. Dismissing a writ appeal filed by the Pristine Estates Villa Owners Maintenance Mutually Aided Co-operative Society Limited, the...

Anirudhha Joshi's Personality Rights: Google Seeks Modification Of Delhi High Court Order Requiring Takedown Of Similar Content

Google LLC has moved the Delhi High Court seeking modification of a John Doe interim injunction in a personality rights suit filed by Dr Aniruddha Dhairyadhar Joshi, arguing that directions requiring it to act on plaintiff-flagged “similar content” effectively force the platform to adjudicate legality under the “pain of contempt."A single-judge bench of Justice Tushar Rao Gedela heard the matter. The tech company maintained that it has no difficulty removing specifically identified URLs...

Bombay High Court Vacates Temporary Trademark Injunction Granted To Asian Paints Over Suppression

The Bombay High Court has recently vacated an ex-parte ad-interim injunction previously granted to Asian Paints Limited against Apex Metchem, holding that the company suppressed material facts, including the defendant's incorporation in 1995 and its use of the mark “APEX” as part of its trade name in relation to identical goods. Justice Sharmila U. Deshmukh, on March 30, 2026, observed that Asian Paints failed in its duty of full and fair disclosure by not specifically bringing to the Court's...

No Letters Patent Appeal Lies Against Order to Deposit 75% To Challenge MSME Award: Madras High Court

Reiterating that the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 is a self-contained code, the Madras High Court has dismissed a Letters Patent appeal against a Single Judge's order directing a 75% pre-deposit in a challenge to an MSME arbitral award. A Division Bench of Justices C.V. Karthikeyan and K. Kumaresh Babu held, “The order of the learned Single Judge does not fall under the ambit of Order XLIII of the Code of Civil Procedure and therefore, this appeal filed under the Letters Patent would...

GST Proceedings Against A Dissolved Company Lack Jurisdiction: Andhra Pradesh High Court

The Andhra Pradesh High Court on 3 March held that GST proceedings against a non-existent or dissolved company lack jurisdiction and cannot be sustained in law. A Division Bench of Justices R. Raghunandan Rao and T.C.D. Sekhar set aside an assessment order passed against Tata Capital Limited, observing: “The proceedings, which had been initiated, against the dissolved company, before the appointed date, would now have to be taken up against the petitioner company and not the dissolved...

Civil Courts Cannot Decide Shareholder Disputes Requiring Rectification Of Register: Bombay High Court

On 6 April, the Bombay High Court held that only the NCLT can decide disputes over shareholding or rectification of the register of members, and civil courts have no jurisdiction under Section 430 of the Companies Act, 2013. A Bench of Justice R.I. Chagla heard Notices of Motion in a suit filed by the son and ex-wife of a deceased shareholder of Panache Securities Pvt Ltd, who alleged that individuals claiming to act on behalf of the company fraudulently transferred shares, removed a director,...

Amounts Deposited Pursuant To Court Orders Remain Assets Of The Corporate Debtor: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court on 6 April held that amounts deposited in Court under judicial orders remain assets of the corporate debtor, even if they arise from encashment of a bank guarantee after the commencement of insolvency proceedings. A Division Bench of Justices Anil L. Pansare and Nivedita P. Mehta directed the release of the deposited amount to the Resolution Professional of Morarjee Textiles Ltd, rejecting the claim of D.C. Weaving Mills Pvt Ltd, which had sought withdrawal of the amount...

Valid GST Notice Must Disclose Details And Basis of Liability: Punjab & Haryana High Court

The Punjab & Haryana High Court on 2 April held that a GST show cause notice lacking specific allegations, supporting material, and proper reasoning is legally unsustainable and violates principles of natural justice. A Division Bench comprising Justice Deepak Sibal and Justice Alka Sarin set aside a show cause notice issued to Abbott Healthcare Pvt. Ltd., observing: “Before raising a demand, the purpose of putting an assessee to notice, is to make the assessee aware of the department's...

Independence And Impartiality Required Of All Arbitrators, Not Just Presiding One: Madhya Pradesh High Court

The Madhya Pradesh High Court on 31 March held that every arbitrator in a tribunal, including party-appointed arbitrators, must remain independent and impartial under the Seventh Schedule and Section 12(5) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. Justice Vivek Jain appointed Justice K.K. Lahoti as the sole arbitrator to adjudicate the dispute between Hewlett Packard Enterprise India Private Limited (HP/petitioner) and Bhopal Smart City Development Corporation Limited (BSCC/respondent),...

Delhi High Court Temporarily Bars Aashirvad Cinemas From Creating Third-Party OTT Rights In 'Drishyam 3'

The Delhi High Court has temporarily restrained Aashirvad Cinemas from creating any third-party OTT rights in the upcoming Mohanlal-starrer Malayalam film tentatively titled “Drishyam 3”, granting interim protection to Amazon Seller Services Pvt. Ltd. in an arbitration dispute. Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar held that Amazon had made out a case for ad-interim relief and barred the producers, till the next hearing, from “creating or otherwise dealing with any third-party rights in respect...

GST Refund Limitation Must Exclude COVID Period Under Section 54: Andhra Pradesh High Court

The Andhra Pradesh High Court on 11 March held that while computing the limitation period under Section 54 of the CGST Act, 2017, the benefit of exclusion of time during the COVID-19 period must be granted. Section 54 governs the process for claiming refunds of tax, interest, or any other amount paid under GST.A Division Bench of Justice R. Raghunandan Rao and Justice T.C.D. Sekhar set aside the rejection of a GST refund application filed by McWane India Private Limited on the ground of...