Patna HC Sets Aside ₹25 Lakh Arbitral Compensation Against Bihar State Food Corporation For No Proof of Loss

The Patna High Court has partly set aside an arbitral award against Bihar State Food and Civil Supplies Corporation Ltd, holding that compensation awarded without evidence of actual loss or injury could not be sustained. A Division Bench of Justice Mohit Kumar Shah and Justice Arun Kumar Jha held: “Thus, there is no proof much less any evidence whatsoever, on the records of the arbitral proceedings regarding the claimant-respondent having suffered any loss or injury, hence the award of...

Calcutta High Court Denies Relief To SARFAESI Auctions Buyer After DRT Bars SBI From Issuing Sale Certificate

The Calcutta High Court has held that State Bank of India cannot be faulted for withholding a sale certificate to a successful auction purchaser when it is restrained from doing so by a subsisting Debts Recovery Tribunal order. The Court refused to direct the bank to either complete the sale or refund ₹11.41 crore paid by the purchaser. Justice Ravi Krishan Kapur held: “This is not a case where the respondent bank has failed to issue the sale certificate on its own volition. There is no...

Revenue Must Rebut Taxpayer's Claimed Date Of GST Order Communication With Cogent Evidence: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has reiterated that where a taxpayer discloses the actual date of communication of an order under the Uttar Pradesh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, the burden shifts to the Revenue to rebut that assertion with cogent material. It further held that the appellate authority is bound to give an independent finding on the date of communication of the order. Referring to the decisions of the division bench of the Allahabad High Court in Bambino Agro Industries Limited v....

Re-Filing Delays In Commercial Cases Must Be Treated As Seriously As Filing Delays: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has dismissed an appeal by the Delhi Development Authority against a Commercial Court judgment upholding an arbitral award, refusing to condone delays in filing and re-filing the matter. A Division Bench of Justice C. Hari Shankar and Justice Om Prakash Shukla underscored the need for strict adherence to timelines in commercial disputes arising from arbitral proceedings. “It is also settled that, in commercial matters, delay in re-filing has also to be treated with...

Jharkhand High Court Pulls Up JSBC for Seeking Adjournment In Arbitration Matter Over Transfer of MD

The Jharkhand High Court recently pulled up Jharkhand State Beverages Corporation for seeking a second adjournment in an arbitration matter on the ground that its managing director had been transferred. The court observed that the corporation was “bent upon delaying the matter.” It then appointed former Jharkhand High Court judge Justice N.N. Tiwari as sole arbitrator in its dispute with K.S. Multi Facility Services Private Limited. Chief Justice M.S. Sonak observed that the corporation's...

Calcutta HC Sets Aside Injunction, Says Market Value, Not Plaint Valuation, Determines Commercial Suit Threshold

The Calcutta High Court has held that where a dispute relates to immovable property used for trade, the market value of the property, not the valuation stated in the plaint (for determining specified value under the Commercial Courts Act), must govern, while setting aside interim injunction orders in a tenancy dispute. A Division Bench of Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya and Justice Biswaroop Chowdhury observed: “Thus, whatever might have been attributed as valuation in the plaint by the...

Karnataka High Court Dismisses State Commercial Appeal Over 444-Day Delay, Calls Explanation 'Misleading'

The Karnataka High Court on recently (April 28) refused to condone a 444-day delay by Karnataka Public Works Department authorities in filing a commercial appeal and dismissed the case. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C.M. Poonacha held that the explanation offered by the State authorities for the delay was “inaccurate and misleading.” “In view of the above, the averment that the notices had not been served on the appellants, is erroneous. Not only was the...

Dissent Must Be an “Informed Decision,” Not “Post Facto”: Calcutta High Court Sets Aside Majority Arbitral Award

The Calcutta High Court has set aside an arbitral award in favour of Neo Metaliks Limited, holding that a dissenting arbitrator cannot be excluded from deliberations and given the majority award only after it has been finalised. Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya passed the ruling while allowing Kessels Engineering Works Pvt Ltd's challenge to the award and staying operation of the judgment for 30 days. Justice Bhattacharyya observed, “Deliberation between the co-arbitrators in a multi-member...

Commercial Courts Must Explain Refusal To Impose Safeguards While Denying Summary Judgments In Lease Disputes: Calcutta HC

The Calcutta High Court has recently held that when a tenant continues to occupy a property by relying on a lease agreement, a Commercial Court hearing a plea for summary judgment must explain why it is not requiring safeguards such as payment or security instead of simply sending the dispute to a full trial. Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya set aside a February 17, 2025 order of the Commercial Court at Rajarhat, which had rejected a summary judgment application filed by Flowers Valley...

Karnataka HC Directs Takedown Of AI-Morphed Content Depicting Dharmasthala Dharmadhikari Veerendra Heggade, Family

The Karnataka High Court has directed the State of Karnataka and the Bengaluru CEN Police Station to take immediate steps to ensure removal of AI-generated, morphed, manipulated, and fabricated images and video content depicting Dr. D. Veerendra Heggade, the Dharmadhikari of Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala, and his family members. The content is to be removed from all social media platforms, URLs, and press and media platforms within one week from receipt of a copy of the order. Justice S.R. Krishna...

Bombay High Court Orders Police To Ensure Hotel Horizon Property Handover, Flags Directors' Obstruction

The Bombay High Court recently (May 6) directed police to use reasonable force, if necessary, to ensure complete handover of Hotel Horizon Pvt Ltd's Juhu property to the successful resolution applicant. The court said the suspended directors were continuing to obstruct compliance with orders passed by the National Company Law Tribunal and the High Court.A Bench of Justices Manish Pitale and Shreeram V. Shirsat was hearing a plea by former resolution professional and interim manager Pravin R...

Bombay High Court Upholds Arbitral Award Rejecting Insurer's Undisclosed Expert Report In Claim Dispute

The Bombay High Court has recently upheld an arbitral award rejecting an insurer's reliance on an undisclosed expert opinion used to reduce an insured's claim, holding that the challenge essentially sought a reappreciation of evidence. Justice Gauri Godse held the arbitral tribunal was justified in discarding the insurer's expert report. “ The expert opinion's report is also rightly not accepted by the Tribunal. It is held that the expert was appointed without any intimation to the...