Mere Excise Registration Lapse Not Wilful Suppression If Dept. Knew About Unit: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court on 25 September held that the extended five-year limitation period under the proviso to Section 11-A(1) of the Central Excise Act, 1944 cannot be invoked merely because a manufacturer failed to register or produce declarations, where the department already knew about his manufacturing unit and the goods manufactured there. Justice Irshad Ali quashed the demand of Rs.6,27,086/- in Additional Excise Duty and the equivalent penalty imposed on Siraj Ahmad, proprietor of...

UPVAT| Joint Commissioner Can't Revise Order Without Commissioner's Authorisation: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court on 11 September held that the Joint Commissioner (Executive) cannot exercise revisional powers under Section 56(1) of the U.P. VAT Act, 2008 without an order of authorisation by the Commissioner, Commercial Tax. Proceedings initiated by an unauthorised officer are without jurisdiction and void ab initio. Justice Piyush Agrawal allowed Sai Baba Ent Bhatta's revision against the order of the Commercial Tax Tribunal, Kanpur, holding that there was nothing on record to show...

Word 'Arbitration' In Brief Clause Can Be Sufficient To Show Intention To Arbitrate: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court has held that a brief arbitration clause can constitute a valid and binding arbitration agreement even when it does not use words such as “shall” or “will” to expressly require disputes to be referred to arbitration.Justice Amit Borkar observed, “The Court is not adding the word 'shall' to the contract as a new term. The Court is trying to understand the words already written in the Purchase Order in their ordinary commercial setting. The word 'Arbitration', along with the...

Gulf Trade Disruptions: Rajasthan HC Issues Notice On MSME's Challenge To RELIEF Scheme Cut-Off Date

The Rajasthan High Court has recently issued notices to the government on a petition challenging the cut-off under Component III of the Resilience and Logistics Intervention for Export Facilitation (RELIEF) Scheme, which restricts reimbursement support to shipments having Onboard Bills of Lading issued between February 14, 2026 and March 15, 2026.A Division Bench of Justices Inderjeet Singh and Sandeep Taneja was hearing a petition filed by Agrim Overseas, an MSME exporter of perishable...

Karnataka High Court Dismisses JSW Steel's Plea Over PMLA Attachment Linked To Alleged Illegal Iron Ore Transactions

The Karnataka High Court has dismissed JSW Steel's challenge to a PMLA Appellate Tribunal order concerning the attachment of its bank accounts totalling ₹24.37 crore over alleged proceeds from illegally mined iron ore supplied to the company.The Court held that JSW had been permitted to raise all factual and legal submissions before the Tribunal and therefore its grievance that the matter should have been remanded was untenable.A division bench of Justices D.K. Singh and T.M. Nadaf said...

Madras High Court Says Precision Instruments Used In Manufacturing Eligible For 3% Sales Tax Rate

The Madras High Court has held that precision instruments such as Vernier Calipers, Depth Gauges and Cylinder Gauges used by manufacturers in Tamil Nadu qualify for a 3% concessional tax rate when sold against Form XVII declarations, even though the instruments are not consumed in the manufacturing processA Division Bench of Justice Anita Sumanth and Justice E. Manoharan observed that the benefit under Section 3(3) of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 extends to “any goods” used in...

Gujarat HC Allows Plea To Condone Delay In Filing Income Tax Return Despite Pending Appeal Against Assesment

The Gujarat High Court has ruled that the rejection of a taxpayer's application seeking condonation of delay in filing an income tax return can be examined even after an assessment order has been passed and an appeal against it is pending before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals).“We do not subscribe to the objection raised by the Revenue since it is an admitted position that the Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals) does not have the power in condoning the delay and the remedy invoked by...

Delhi High Court Restrains Clothing Business From Using 'Men's Darzi' Mark

The Delhi High Court has restrained a clothing business from using the "Men's Darzi" mark from using the trademark, its accompanying logo or any identical or deceptively similar mark in relation to goods and services, including clothing and apparel.Justice A. J. Bhambhani passed the ex-parte ad-interim injunction on September 18, 2026, after finding that Darzi (India) LLP and another had made out a prima-facie case. The court also found that the balance of convenience lay in their favour and...

'Really Troubling': Delhi High Court Orders Opening Of Taxpayer's Locker Seized For Over 30 Years

The Delhi High Court has directed the Income Tax Department to open a taxpayer's locker, which has remained seized for more than 30 years, observing that continued seizure of the locker serves no purpose after the tax dispute had already been finalised by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT).The Division Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Aditi Choudhary was hearing a petition filed by Devi Dayal Aggarwal, who approached the Court alleging that the Assessing Officer had failed to pass an...

Can Presumption That Seized Goods Are Smuggled Apply To 'Mastermind' Not In Physical Possession? Delhi HC To Examine

The Delhi High Court is set to examine whether the statutory presumption under Section 123 of the Customs Act can apply to a person alleged to be the “mastermind” or financier who is not in physical possession of the seized goods.The Division Bench of Justices Avneesh Jhingan and Shail Jain has framed the question while hearing appeals filed by the Principal Commissioner of Customs (Preventive) against CESTAT orders.Section 123 of the Customs Act provides for a statutory shift in the burden of...

2015 Amendment To Arbitration Act Cannot Invalidate Pre-Amendment Arbitrator Appointment: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that the statutory ineligibility introduced for arbitrators by the 2015 amendment to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, cannot be retrospectively applied to invalidate an appointment made before the amendment came into force.A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetrapal and Bharat Parashar upheld the appointment of a serving Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) employee as sole arbitrator.The arbitration was invoked on June 3, 2014 and the arbitrator was...

Delhi High Court Allows Revival Of 'HMP' Trademark As Registry Fails To Prove Renewal Notice Was Sent

The Delhi High Court on 23 September allowed a petition filed by trademark owner Punam Chand Kedia seeking revival of his “HMP” mark after the Trade Marks Registry rejected his renewal application on the ground that the prescribed renewal period had expired. A Bench comprising Justice Vikas Mahajan observed: “In that view of the matter, in the absence of any reliable evidence in support of the stand taken by the respondent that O-3 notices were sent, it is difficult for this court to accept...