Bombay High Court Sets Aside ₹62.42 Lakh GST Demand Over Notices Uploaded In Wrong Portal Section

The Bombay High Court on 16 October set aside a GST demand of Rs. 62.42 lakh against Abracadabra India after finding that the tax department had uploaded the notices in a separate section of the GST portal, depriving the company of an opportunity to respond. A Division Bench of Justices M.S. Karnik and Sandesh D. Patil held that the notices had not been uploaded in the regular “View Notices and Orders” section of the GST portal but in the “Additional Notices and Orders” section, which the...

Delhi High Court Orders Takedown Of Fake Kotak Trading Accounts From Social Media

The Delhi High Court on 14 October granted an ex parte ad-interim injunction to Kotak Mahindra Bank and Kotak Securities against unidentified defendants accused of impersonating them on social media to lure investors into fraudulent trading schemes. Justice Vikas Mahajan directed Meta Platforms, WhatsApp, Google, Telegram, X Corp and LinkedIn to remove the infringing accounts and disclose the operators' KYC details. He held: “I am of the view that the plaintiffs have made out a prima facie...

Delhi High Court Rejects Godrej's ₹1 Crore Contempt Claim Against Geeken Over Registered Designs

The Delhi High Court on 13 October declined to initiate contempt action against Geeken Seating Collection Private Limited in a design infringement suit filed by Godrej and Boyce Manufacturing Company Limited, holding. Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav noted that Godrej had failed to establish wilful disobedience of the Court's orders, and observed that “a breach which is inadvertent, or which arises from a bona fide understanding of the scope of the order, does not attract punitive...

Delhi High Court Orders Takedown Of Fake Website Misusing Experion's 'Emerelle Reserve' Mark

The Delhi High Court on 16 October allowed real estate developer Experion Developers Pvt. Ltd.'s application for an ad-interim injunction, restraining a website operator from using its “EXPERION” trademarks and directing the domain registrar to take down the website within 72 hours of receiving notice. Justice Tejas Karia passed the order in a suit filed by Experion against Ishu Singh, the apparent registrant of www.experionemerellereserve.in, and Endurance International Group India Private...

Govt. Must Prove How Election Duties Prevented Timely Filing Of Arbitration Appeals: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on 15 October held that government departments cannot justify delays in filing arbitration appeals merely by citing reduced office functioning during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections without explaining how the elections prevented timely filing. A Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Amit Sharma refused to condone delays of 119 and 132 days in two appeals filed by the Department of Land Resources against Mukesh and Associates, which...

Bombay High Court Restrains Ampra Biobact From Using 'PK-BOR' Fertilizer Mark Similar To 'PK MOR'

The Bombay High Court on 15 October granted ad-interim relief in a trade mark infringement and passing off suit filed by Indian Agro Chem Industries Pvt. Ltd. against Ampra Biobact Private Limited, restraining the latter from using the mark “PK-BOR” for water-soluble fertilizers. A Bench comprising Justice Madhav J. Jamdar observed: “The rival marks are clearly phonetically, visually and structurally similar, to the point of being nearly identical. There is an inconsequential difference of one...

Simultaneous Withdrawal Of All Three Arbitrators Cannot Be Treated As Termination Of Arbitration: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has reiterated that arbitration proceedings do not automatically end when all three members of an arbitral tribunal withdraw from a case. Instead, their withdrawal requires the appointment of substitute arbitrators under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996.Justice Sachin Datta relying on apex court's ruling in Yashwith Constructions (P) Ltd. v. Simplex Concrete Piles India Ltd, observed, “Thus, the consequence prescribed by the legislature in the event of withdrawal...

Allahabad High Court Calls For Law Or RBI Guidelines To Allow Comatose Patients' Dependents Access To Bank Funds

The Allahabad High Court recently observed that legislation or Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines are needed to establish a mechanism for releasing money lying in the savings bank accounts of comatose patients to their dependents. Such a mechanism would help families meet hospital expenses and manage household needs. A division bench of Justice Ajit Kumar and Justice Garima Prashad observed: “In the circumstances, therefore, some sort of legislation from the competent legislature or even...

Cheque Bounce Compensation Cannot Be Recovered Through Separate Civil Suit: Gujarat High Court

Compensation awarded in cheque dishonour cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act cannot be recovered through a separate civil suit, the Gujarat High Court has ruled, holding that the law provides a procedure for recovering such amounts.Justice Maulik J Shelat rejected a plea to amend a pending recovery suit to include compensation awarded in the criminal proceedings, interest and legal expenses incurred by the complainant.The dispute arose from a recovery suit filed in 2014...

GSTAT Trivandrum Allows Cashew Exporter's Refund Claim For IGST Paid Twice Due To Return Filing Error

On 16 October, the Thiruvananthapuram Bench of the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) allowed a cashew exporter Associated Cashews to recover approximately Rs. 19.79 lakh in Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) paid twice, holding that a clerical error in GST returns cannot justify denying a refund of tax paid in excess, A Bench comprising Vice-President Subramanya Rayaprol and Technical Member Ramamoorthi Sriram observed that the GST Department cannot retain tax collected...

Bombay High Court Bars Owners From Stalling Redevelopment Over Disputes On Flat Sizes And Parking

The Bombay High Court on 19 October held that parties cannot obstruct redevelopment or use a housing society to pressure a developer into renegotiating contractual terms when their disputes are covered by an existing agreement providing for arbitration. Justice Amit Borkar partly allowed a petition filed by Bindu Raheja & Sons LLP against Stephen Francis Coutts and seven others under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, granting interim protection to a redevelopment...

Karnataka High Court Refuses Winzo US Plea To Transfer PMLA-Attached Funds To Another US Bank

The Karnataka High Court on 9 October refused to permit Winzo US Inc. to transfer funds held in its attached Silicon Valley Bank accounts to another bank in the United States, while allowing it to approach the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to seek transfer of the funds to the agency's designated account in India. Justice C.M. Poonacha noted that funds already covered by attachment orders cannot be transferred in a manner that could dilute the effect of the attachment and its confirmation under...