Madras High Court Sets Aside Refusal Of 'THE SKIN COMPANY' Trademark, Orders Advertisement

The Madras High Court on 9 October set aside the refusal of Hyderabad-based Tregum Remedies Private Limited's application for “THE SKIN COMPANY” in Class 3 and directed the Registry to advertise the mark in the Trade Marks Journal. A Single Judge Bench of Justice P.B. Balaji held that the Registry had failed to give reasons for refusing the application, consider the company's reply or assess the mark as a whole. He observed: “it is not open to the authorities or the Courts to dissect a...

Bombay High Court Denies Anticipatory Bail To Tax Consultant Accused Of Misusing ₹45 Lakh Meant For GST Payment

The Bombay High Court has refused anticipatory bail to a tax consultant accused of retaining over ₹45 lakh given to him by a client for GST payments and allegedly preparing fake GST bills to show that the amount had been deposited with the government.Justice Madhav J. Jamdar was hearing an anticipatory bail application filed by Rakesh Rajendra Thakur, who was booked under Sections 316(2) and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, for criminal breach of trust and cheating.The court...

Gujarat High Court Holds ₹50 Cr. Nirma Trademark Sale Non-Taxable For Unascertainable Acquisition Cost

The Gujarat High Court on 9 October held that the Rs. 50 crore received by Shantaben K. Patel from the sale of the 'Nirma' and 'Nima' trademarks was not taxable as long-term capital gains because their cost of acquisition was unascertainable. A Division Bench comprising Justices Bhargav D. Karia and Pranav Trivedi dismissed the Revenue's appeals against the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal's orders and upheld the Tribunal's findings on the taxability of the receipt, the binding nature of the...

Customs Can't Withhold Detained Goods Without Stay Of Confiscation Order: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has observed that merely because the Customs Department has challenged an order before a revisional authority, it cannot withhold detained goods in the absence of any interim protection or stay against the operation of the order.The Division Bench of Justices Avneesh Jhingan and Shail Jain made the observation while dealing with a petition filed by a woman seeking release of her gold jewellery detained by Customs authorities at the Delhi airport.Petitioner had arrived from...

DRI/CBIC Headquarters In Delhi Cannot Confer Jurisdiction Over Goods Detained In UP: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that the location of the headquarters of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) or the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) in Delhi does not confer territorial jurisdiction on the High Court to entertain a challenge against detention of goods at an Inland Container Depot (ICD) in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh.The Division Bench of Justices Avneesh Jhingan and Shail Jain dismissed a writ petition filed by M/s Pradeep Industries and others, holding that...

Service Tax | Delhi High Court Deprecates Practice Of Issuing Clarifications To Bypass Advance Ruling Mechanism

The Delhi High Court has deprecated the practice of service tax authorities issuing clarifications to bypass the statutory mechanism of advance rulings for determining tax liability.The Division Bench of Justices Avneesh Jhingan and Shail Jain made the observation while disposing of a writ petition filed by Bajaj Capital Ltd., which had challenged a 2007 communication issued by the Commissioner of Service Tax, Delhi, regarding the applicability of service tax to its activities.Bajaj Capital was...

Sales Tax | Whether C-Form Acknowledges Liability To Extend Limitation Requires Evidence: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has recently ruled that whether a C-Form issued under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (CST Act), certifying a transaction between registered dealers, amounts to an acknowledgment of debt, must be examined on the facts and evidence. The question cannot be decided at the threshold stage while considering an application to reject a plaint under Order VII Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC).The Division Bench of Justices Avneesh Jhingan and Shail Jain made the...

GST Notices Not Invalid Without Visible Digital Signature If Authenticated On Portal: Telangana High Court

The Telangana High Court has recently held that GST show-cause notices and adjudication orders cannot be invalidated merely because downloaded PDF copies do not display a visible digital signature. This is provided they have been electronically authenticated by the proper officer and uploaded on the GST common portal.“The case of the petitioners based upon the contention that the PDF format does not contain the visible digital signature of the proper officer is untenable in law,” the Full Bench...

Andhra Pradesh High Court Strikes Down Section 147A Of Income Tax Act As Unconstitutional

The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Monday struck down Section 147A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, as unconstitutional. Introduced retrospectively through the Finance Act, 2026, the provision clarifies that Jurisdictional Assessing Officers (JAOs), rather than the National Faceless Assessment Centre or an assessment unit, can act as the Assessing Officer for issuing reassessment notices under Sections 148 and 148A.A division bench of Justice Ninala Jayasurya and Justice T.C.D. Sekhar held that the...

GST Circular Requiring Physical Service Of Notices After Registration Cancellation Is 'Founded On Sound Common Sense': Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has set aside an ex parte adjudication order passed under Section 74 of the UP GST Act, 2017 where the show-cause notice had been served on the dealer only through the Common Portal, almost five years after his registration had already been cancelled. The Court noted that the Commissioner of Commercial Tax, U.P. had, by Circular dated May 07, 2025, issued binding instructions to subordinate authorities to serve physical notice on noticees facing adjudication...

GST | Refusal Of Cross-Examination For A Wrong Reason Does Not Mean It Had To Be Granted: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has held that GST authorities cannot automatically be required to allow cross-examination merely because the reason given for denying such a request is legally unsustainable. The need for cross-examination must be assessed on the facts of each case. The bench of Justice Saumitra Dayal Singh and Justice Swarupama Chaturvedi held “While we accept the contention of learned counsel for the petitioner, that the reasoning offered by the adjudicating authority to...

Allahabad High Court Refuses To Reopen Deemed Dealer Status Of Railway Container Contractors

The Allahabad High Court has refused to reconsider its earlier finding that railway container contractors were deemed dealers under the Uttar Pradesh Value Added Tax Act, 2008. Justice Vikas Budhwar held that the finding had attained finality and could not be challenged before a coordinate bench without being assailed before a higher forum.Section 2(h)(ix) of the Uttar Pradesh Value Added Tax Act, 2008, treats railway container contractors as dealers if they fail to disclose the consignors' or...