Delhi High Court Temporarily Restrains Deepika Padukone's 82°E From Using “Lotus Splash” Mark In Dispute With Lotus Herbals

The Delhi High Court has issued a temporary injunction restraining actress Deepika Padukone's DPKA Universal Consumer Ventures Private Limited, the entity behind the skincare brand 82°E, from manufacturing, advertising or selling its "Lotus Splash" facial cleanser until final disposal of the suit. The Division Bench comprising Justice V. Kameswar Rao and Justice Vinod Kumar held that the use of the mark "Lotus Splash" by the defendants was not merely descriptive of an ingredient but was being...

Income Tax | Duty Drawback Not Eligible for 80-IC Relief ; Taxes on Raw Materials Must Be Set Off: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that while duty drawback receipts are not eligible for deduction under Section 80-IC of the Income Tax Act, the excise and customs duties paid by a taxpayer on raw materials are required to be deducted/subsumed from the duty drawback while recomputing income in the facts of the case.A Division Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar partly allowed the appeal filed by Narayan Industries against ITAT order denying its claim for deduction under Section 80-IC in...

Actor Shatrughan Sinha Moves Bombay High Court To Protect 'Personality Rights' And Iconic Dialogue 'Khamosh'

Veteran Bollywood actor and Member of Parliament Shatrughan Sinha has moved the Bombay High Court seeking to protect his personality and publicity rights.The commercial suit, heard by a single-judge bench of Justice Sharmila Deshmukh, alleges the unauthorised use of Sinha's name, image, likeness, and his signature catchphrase, "Khamosh!" The court has reserved the matter for ad-interim orders on Monday. The suit, filed through Sinha's son and Power of Attorney holder, Luv Sinha, describes...

Kerala High Court Mandates Police Verification Of Petitioner's Identity In Bank Account Defreezing Pleas

The Kerala High Court has recently directed strict procedural safeguards in cases where petitioners seek defreezing of their bank accounts, mandating police verification of identity before such pleas are entertained. A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V.M. issued the directions while disposing of a suo motu Judicial Practice and Procedure (JPP) proceeding initiated by the Court. The bench ordered that the Registry of the High Court shall not accept any...

Reassessment Must Be Based On AO's Independent 'Reason To Believe,' Not Borrowed: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has dismissed the Income Tax Department's appeals against NTPC Ltd., holding that reassessment proceedings cannot be initiated merely on the basis of an audit objection and that the statutory requirement of “reason to believe” must be from independent satisfaction of the Assessing Officer (AO).A Division Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar observed,“the provision expressly used the language 'reason to believe' and the same has been interpreted by Hon'ble the...

Expired Contract Cannot Be Terminated: Madras High Court Partly Sets Aside Arbitral Award Favouring Southern Railway

Holding that a contract that has already expired cannot thereafter be terminated, the Madras High Court has partly set aside an arbitral award that upheld Southern Railway's termination of a works contract and the consequent forfeiture of deposits. “The very process of termination presupposes that there is a subsisting contract. If there is no subsisting contract, there is nothing to be terminated thereafter,” Justice N. Anand Venkatesh observed while partly allowing a petition under Section 34...

Delhi High Court Grants Bail In NDPS Case, Says Customs Detention Without Magistrate's Authorisation Illegal

The Delhi High Court has recently granted bail to a foreign national accused in a narcotics smuggling case, holding that once contraband was partially recovered at the airport, Customs authorities were bound to arrest him and produce him before a Magistrate, and that his continued detention without judicial authorisation rendered the subsequent arrest illegal.Justice Manoj Jain observed, “The contraband contained in 19 capsules, suspected to be cocaine, was seized, and thus offence stood...

Delhi High Court Affirms ITAT View That Excise Duty Refund Under Kutch Incentive Scheme Is Capital Receipt

The Delhi High Court has upheld an order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) holding that excise duty refund received by Jindal SAW Ltd. under the Kutch district incentive scheme is a capital receipt and not taxable as income.While dismissing the Income Tax Department's appeal, the Division Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar agreed with ITAT's view that the refund was granted under the Incentive Scheme 2001 for Economic Development of Kutch District, notified by the...

MSMEs Need Not Always Approach Facilitation Council; Arbitration Clause Enforceable: Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court has recently held that enterprises are not required in every case to move the Facilitation Council under Chapter V of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006, which provides a mechanism for referring delayed payment disputes to the Council. Justice Suraj Govindaraj clarified that a contractual arbitration clause remains enforceable unless the statutory process under Section 18 is actually invoked. “It cannot be said, as an absolute proposition,...

Delhi High Court Reiterates Limited Interference In Appeals Against Interim IPR Orders

The Delhi High Court has reiterated that appellate courts must remain highly circumspect before overturning discretionary orders issued by commercial courts in intellectual property matters. The bench comprising Justice C. Hari Shankar and Justice Om Prakash Shukla dismissed an appeal in limine by the owners of the “Golden Eagle” brand against a rival “Golden Kingfisher” product, upholding the decision of the Commercial Court at Tis Hazari to refuse ex parte ad-interim injunction and...

Customs Act | Once SCN States Market Value Of Seized Goods, Burden Lies On Noticee To Disprove It: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has recently held that once the market value of goods seized by the Customs is specified in a show cause notice, the burden lies on the one who recieved notice to disprove the valuation with cogent material, and a mere denial is insufficient to seek interference in appellate proceedings.A division bench of Justices Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Ajay Digpaul was hearing an importer's appeal challenging concurrent findings of the Customs adjudicating authority and CESTAT,...

Gujarat High Court Quashes Notification Withdrawing Transport and Marketing Assistance Scheme

The Gujarat High Court on 5 February set aside a 2022 Commerce Ministry Notification that withdrew the Transport and Marketing Assistance (TMA) Scheme for certain agricultural products with retrospective effect. A Bench of Justice A.S. Supehia and Justice Pranav Trivedi directed exporters' claims accrued before the cancellation of the Scheme must be processed expeditiously. It held: “All the benefits accruing till the issuance of Notification dated 25.03.2022 shall be extended to the...