State Cannot Recover Unintended Benefit From Contractor After Accepting Lump Sum Contract: Telangana HC

The Telangana High Court on 9 July held that the State cannot withhold a contractor's security deposit by raising a claim of “unintended benefit” from Central Excise Duty exemption after accepting a lump-sum contract value without accounting for the exemption at the tender stage. A Division Bench of Justices Moushumi Bhattacharya and Gadi Praveen Kumar dismissed the State's appeal and partly allowed the appeal filed by Gammon Engineers and Contractors Pvt. Ltd. by setting aside the liberty...

Content Creators Move Delhi HC Alleging Misuse Of Facebook 'Edit Post' Tool To Trigger False Copyright Strikes

Two content creators have approached the Delhi High Court alleging that Meta's copyright enforcement system is being exploited by bad actors who manipulate Facebook's "Edit Post" feature to make stolen videos appear older. They claim the allegedly backdated posts are then used to file false copyright complaints against the original creators, resulting in repeated takedowns of their own content.While one creator says the alleged abuse led to the permanent disabling of his verified Instagram...

Minor Admitted To Partnership Firm's Benefits Not Liable For Firm's Loan Default: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court on 7 July held that a person admitted only to the benefits of a partnership firm as a minor cannot be treated as a defaulter for the firm's loan merely because the firm failed to repay its dues. Justice M.A. Abdul Hakhim allowed a petition filed by Dhruv Hitesh Dattani challenging adverse remarks in his CIBIL report, observing that since the partnership firm had already dissolved before he attained majority, there was no occasion for him to exercise the option under...

Best Judgment Assessment Cannot Ignore VAT Composition Scheme Compliance By Contractor: Telangana HC

The Telangana High Court on 13 July held that a best judgment assessment cannot be sustained when the assessing authority fails to consider the statutory composition scheme opted by a works contractor and ignores the records maintained in accordance with the law. A Division Bench comprising Justices P. Sam Koshy and Nandikonda Narsing Rao set aside the assessment order passed against Chaitanya Enterprises, a proprietary concern engaged in electrical contracting works, which had challenged the...

MP High Court Sets Aside Deletion Of J.P. Structures From Jindal Steel's Trademark Infringement Suit

The Madhya Pradesh High Court on 1 July set aside an order of the Commercial Court, Bhopal, which had deleted a construction contractor from Jindal Steel and Power Limited's trademark infringement suit over the alleged use of counterfeit TMT rebars bearing the “JINDAL TMT” mark in the construction of a Government Medical College project. A Division Bench of Acting Chief Justice Vivek Rusia and Justice Pradeep Mittal allowed the appeals filed against J.P. Structures Private Limited and Others,...

Karnataka High Court Holds S. 271DA , IT Act Penalty Begins Only With S. 274 Notice, Reads In Six-Month Limit

The Karnataka High Court on 7 July held that penalty proceedings under Section 271DA of the Income Tax Act commence only when the Joint Commissioner issues a show cause notice under Section 274, and not when the Assessing Officer merely forwards a proposal for initiating penalty. A Division Bench of Justices S.G. Pandit and K.V. Aravind partly allowed a batch of ten Revenue appeals, clarifying that, although the Act does not prescribe a time limit for issuing a notice under Section 274, the...

Madras High Court Restrains Karnataka Bar From Using 'TVS' Mark

The Madras High Court has granted an ad interim ex parte injunction restraining a Karnataka-based establishment from using the mark "TVS Bar and Restaurant" in a trademark infringement and passing off suit filed by TVS Holdings Limited and TVS Motor Company Limited. Justice K. Kumaresh Babu passed the order on July 10. Holding that the applicants had established their registered rights over the "TVS" trademark, the court observed: "The applicants had been benefitted with the registration of a...

Delhi High Court Upholds Arbitral Award, Says Tribunal Cannot Revisit Merits After Passing Award

The Delhi High Court has held that once an arbitral award is passed, the arbitral tribunal becomes functus officio and cannot reopen the merits of its decision. Its powers thereafter are confined to correcting computational, clerical, typographical, or similar errors. Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar delivered the ruling while dismissing cross-petitions filed by Supreme Advertising Private Limited and Genus Power Infrastructures Limited. The court observed, "Once an award is rendered, the...

Calcutta High Court Upholds Arbitral Award Rejecting ₹205.70 Crore Claims Against KMRCL

The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday dismissed an appeal filed by ITD-ITD CEM Joint Venture and upheld an arbitral award rejecting its claims of about ₹205.70 crore against Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (KMRCL). It found no ground to interfere with the tribunal's conclusions or the earlier order refusing to set aside the award. A division bench of Justice Debangsu Basak and Justice Md. Shabbar Rashidi upheld the May 8, 2026 judgment of the Single Judge. It held, "We are of the view that the...

Delhi High Court Refers SOCIAL HOUSE-SOCIAL Trademark Row To Mediation

The Delhi High Court has referred the trademark dispute between hospitality brands "SOCIAL HOUSE" and "SOCIAL" to mediation. It also issued notice on an appeal filed by SOCIAL HOUSE proprietor Vardhaman Choksi against a judgment that had cancelled his trademark. A division bench of Justice V. Kameswar Rao and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora was hearing Choksi's appeal against a common judgment dated April 10, 2026. By that judgment, a single judge had ordered removal of the "SOCIAL HOUSE"...

Delhi High Court Upholds Confiscation of 2.7 kg Undeclared Gold, Says Experienced Traveller Knew Customs Rules

The Delhi High Court has upheld the confiscation of over 2.7 kilograms of gold brought into India from Dubai without declaration, observing that the petitioner's experience as an international traveller showed that he was fully aware of his obligation to declare dutiable goodsA Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Shail Jain refused to interfere with the concurrent findings of the adjudicating authority, the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals) and the revisional authority, which had held...

Party Cannot Reopen Maintainability Of Fresh Arbitration After Challenging Earlier Award: MP High Court

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has recently held that a party cannot reopen the issue of maintainability at the stage of appointment of an arbitrator after having challenged an earlier arbitral award and after a court permitted fresh arbitration if disputes persisted. The ruling came while the court appointed a fresh arbitrator to adjudicate a dispute between MSP Infrastructures Limited and Madhya Pradesh Road Development Corporation Ltd. (MPRDCL). Justice Deepak Khot held that the question of...