Delhi High Court Upholds VAT Refund To Taxpayer After Return Accepted Under Self-Assessment

The Delhi High Court has held that a taxpayer is entitled to a refund under the Delhi Value Added Tax Act, 2004 (DVAT Act) where the return has been accepted under the self-assessment mechanism and no proceedings for assessment, reassessment or audit have been initiated.The Division Bench of Justices Avneesh Jhingan and Shail Jain made the observation while dismissing an appeal filed by the Commissioner of Trade and Taxes against an order of the Delhi Value Added Tax Appellate Tribunal directing...

Pre-2015 Arbitration Does Not Validate Unilateral Arbitrator Appointment: Delhi HIgh Court

The Delhi High Court has held that the fact that an arbitration began before the 2015 amendment to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act does not, by itself, make a unilateral appointment of an arbitrator valid.A division bench of Justice Avneesh Jhingan and Justice Shail Jain upheld the setting aside of a ₹77 crore arbitral award against Bharat Forge Limited and BF Infrastructure Limited. The court found that Tarsem Jain, who had invoked the arbitration, breached the agreed procedure by...

CGST Penalty: Delhi High Court Says Questions On Limitation, Proper Officer & Liability Must Be Raised In Appeal

The Delhi High Court has declined to entertain writ petitions challenging penalties imposed under the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, observing that questions concerning limitation, the competence of the Proper Officer and the nature of the petitioners' liability should be examined by the statutory appellate authority.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Khetarpal and Bharat Parashar was dealing with three connected writ petitions arising out of a common adjudication order dated March...

Delhi High Court Sends Importer To Customs Appellate Remedy Over 9-Year Assessment Delay

The Delhi High Court has relegated an importer to the statutory appellate remedy after adjudication orders were passed in respect of its provisional customs assessments, which the importer had challenged on the ground of a delay of over nine years.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Amit Mahajan held that the writ petition could not be kept pending merely because the Supreme Court was examining the larger issue concerning delay in adjudication proceedings. The Court also took note...

DEL Status Cannot Continue For Pre-CIRP Defaults After IBC Resolution Plan: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that continuing a company's Denied Entry List (DEL) status to enforce export obligations arising before the commencement of its insolvency proceedings would violate the “clean slate” principle under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). This would apply where the monetary liabilities arising from those defaults have been settled under an approved resolution planJustice Amit Mahajan made the observation while allowing a petition filed by Waaree Transpower...

Supplier's Alleged Non-Registration Under MSMED Act Does Not Nullify Arbitral Award: J&K High Court

The High Court of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh on 30 September held that an arbitral award passed under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006 does not become a nullity merely because the supplier was allegedly not registered under the Act when the underlying transaction took place. Justice Sanjay Dhar dismissed three revision petitions filed by Kashmir Confectionary Store, Mehak Trading Co. and Naugraein Traders, challenging the execution of arbitral awards obtained by...

Delhi High Court Says NatWest Can't Reduce Interest On ₹5.89 Crore Court-Ordered FDR Without Notice

The Delhi High Court on 23 September dismissed an appeal filed by NatWest Markets PLC against a direction requiring it to pay interest at the higher applicable rate on a fixed deposit maintained pursuant to a court order. A Bench comprising Justices Avneesh Jhingan and Shail Jain passed the order while dealing with NatWest's challenge to the Single Judge's direction to deposit the entire amount with the Registrar General along with interest calculated at the average rate applicable during the...

Incorrect Flat Area In Bank Auction Documents Can't Defeat Buyers' Property Rights: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on 30 September held that a cooperative housing society cannot deny flat buyers membership and thereby deprive them of their rights in the property merely because the sale documents executed by a bank contain an incorrect description of the flat's area. A Division Bench comprising Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Dinesh Bhatt directed the cooperative society to issue the petitioners' membership certificate within one week, forward it to the Registrar of Cooperative Societies...

Partner's Claim For Contribution From Co-Partners Arbitrable Despite Guarantor Status: Delhi High Court

On 5 October, the Delhi High Court held that a partner's claim against co-partners for money paid towards a firm's liability remains arbitrable even if the partner made the payment as a guarantor. It also clarified that the nature of the claim, and not merely the capacity in which the bank proceeded against the partner, determines whether it is covered by the arbitration agreement. A Division Bench comprising Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Bharat Parashar restored an arbitral award in favour of...

No Court Can Condon Delay In DRT Written Statements Beyond 45 Days: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has ruled that delay beyond the maximum 45-day period for filing a written statement before a Debts Recovery Tribunal (DRT) under Section 19(5)(i) of the Recovery of Debts and Bankruptcy Act, 1993 (RDB Act) cannot be condoned.“The delay beyond the maximum period 45 days prescribed under Section 19(5)(i) of the RDBA Act cannot be condoned by any Court,” a Division Bench of Justice Subramonium Prasad and Justice Renu Bhatnagar observed while dismissing a petition filed by...

Delhi High Court Asks RBI To Caution Banks After Axis Bank's Unilaterally Appointed Arbitrator Handles 4,155 Cases

The Delhi High Court has directed the Reserve Bank of India to caution banks against unilateral appointments of arbitrators and consider remedial measures or guidance for banks and financial institutions on the issue.The direction came after the Court was informed that an arbitrator appointed by Axis Bank had handled 4,155 arbitrations concerning the Bank over four to five years. The Bank also informed the Court that around 76,000 awards had been passed pan-India by such sole arbitrators...

Later DRC-01 Date Alone Cannot Make GST SCN Time-Barred: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that a delay in generating Form GST DRC-01, an electronic summary of a GST show-cause notice, does not by itself make the underlying notice time-barred if the substantive notice was issued within the prescribed period.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Khetarpal and Bharat Parashar was dealing with two petitions filed by a proprietorship concern challenging proceedings under Section 74 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017.The principal issue...