Supreme Court & High Courts
Supreme Court Upholds Odisha Entry Tax Act, Dismisses Tata Sponge Iron's Challenge
The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed Tata Sponge Iron Limited's challenge to the constitutional validity of the Odisha Entry Tax Act, 1999, and upheld the Orissa High Court's refusal to entertain the plea. The company had also sought a refund of entry tax collected by the State of Odisha. A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and Prasanna B. Varale said there was no reason to interfere with the High Court's order. “We do not find any infirmity in the impugned order,” the court said. Tata...
Delhi High Court Says Impermissible Foreign Tax Reference Can't Extend Limitation For Search Assessments
The Delhi High Court has ruled that the Income Tax Department cannot extend the time limit for completing search assessments merely by making a reference to a foreign tax authority if the information sought is not permissible under the applicable tax treaty. Dismissing a batch of appeals filed by the Revenue, a Division Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar upheld the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal's finding that assessment orders passed for Assessment Years 2011–12 to 2017–18 were...
Delhi High Court Refuses To Cancel 'REKIN-SP' Trademark Registration In Rexcin Pharma Plea
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday refused to cancel the registration of the pharmaceutical trademark 'REKIN-SP,' dismissing a rectification plea filed by rival company Rexcin Pharmaceuticals Private Limited, which claimed rights over the mark 'REXCIN.' The Court also declined to restrain the use of the 'REKIN-SP' mark at the interim stage in the infringement suit.In a judgment dated January 27, 2026, Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora held that Rexcin Pharmaceuticals had failed to establish any...
“Very Easy To Blame A Professional”: Delhi High Court Rejects Plea To Restore GST Registration Blaming CA
The Delhi High Court has refused to restore a trader's cancelled GST registration, observing that it is “very easy to blame a professional” after the firm attributed its failure to respond to tax notices to its Chartered Accountant. A Division Bench of Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Ajay Digpaul dismissed a batch of writ petitions filed by Fone Zone NXT, a proprietorship firm dealing in mobile phones and allied accessories. The firm had challenged the cancellation of its GST...
Imported Parts Alone Don't Justify Higher Sales Tax On Car Audio Systems: Madras High Court
The Madras High Court has ruled, in a dispute over the tax treatment of Kenwood-branded car audio systems, that the use of imported components does not by itself make the finished product an imported good, holding that “the parts do not, by themselves, constitute a complete car audio system”. A bench of Justices Anita Sumanth and Mummineni Sudheer Kumar was deciding whether Nippon Audiotronix's car audio systems were taxable at 12.5 percent as domestic goods or at 20 percent as imported...
After Supreme Court Dismisses SLP, Delhi High Court Expresses Dissatisfaction Over Duty Drawbacks Withheld By Customs
The Delhi High Court has expressed dissatisfaction over the Customs Department's failure to implement its earlier judgment directing the release of duty drawback amounts to the petitioners, despite the Supreme Court having dismissed the Department's special leave petition (SLP).A Division Bench of Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Shail Jain was hearing a batch of writ petitions seeking implementation of the Court's judgment dated February 13, 2025. The earlier judgment had quashed CBIC...
Madras High Court Quashes Cancellation Of 'SAKTHI' Trademark Without Prior Notice
The Madras High Court on Tuessay set aside the cancellation of a registered trademark by the Trade Marks Registry without prior notice to the trademark owner, holding that such action is illegal and violative of the principles of natural justice.Justice N. Anand Venkatesh, in a judgment delivered on January 27, 2026, allowed an appeal filed by Perundurai Chennimalai Gounder Duraisamy, a Tamil Nadu-based food products manufacturer and the proprietor of 'SAKTHI' trademark, directing the Trade...
Delhi High Court Allows IIM Jammu's Impleadment In Arbitration-Linked Dispute Over Jagti Campus Construction
The Delhi High Court recently allowed IIM Jammu to be impleaded in arbitration-related proceedings over the construction of its permanent campus at Jagti, despite the institute not being a signatory to the arbitration agreement.The order, pronounced by Joint Registrar Deepak Dabas, held that the institute is a necessary party because it is the ultimate beneficiary of the premises and of all acts or omissions of the contractor. He held,"I am of the considered view that IIM Jammu is entitled of...
Uploading Show Cause Notice on 'Additional Notices' Tab Ineffective, Delhi High Court Reiterates
The Delhi High Court, on 21 January 2026, remanded a matter back to the Proper Officer, noting that uploading a show cause notice under the 'Additional Notices' tab was not a valid service. A Division Bench comprising Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Ajay Digpaul set aside the demand order, allowing the petitioner to file a reply to the show cause notice and avail a personal hearing. The Bench noted: “we are of the view that the petitioner has made out a case for remand for the...
Delhi High Court Bars Rival Manufacturer From Using 'NOVA' Name on Ghee, Dairy Products
The Delhi High Court has temporarily restrained a manufacturer from making, selling, or advertising ghee and other dairy products under the “NOVA” name, after finding that the branding was likely to infringe Sterling Agro's trademark.A Single-Judge Bench of Justice Tushar Rao Gedela passed the order on January 21, 2026, while hearing an interim injunction application in a suit filed by Sterling Agro Industries, a Delhi-based dairy products company that markets its products under the “NOVA”...
Jharkhand High Court Quashes Order Denying Tax Credit For Late Returns In Light Of New GST Amendments
The Jharkhand High Court on 21 January, set aside an appellate order that denied Input Tax Credit (ITC) to a taxpayer, clarifying that credit cannot be denied solely for filing returns beyond the original deadline if subsequent statutory amendments expressly allow it.In a case where the taxpayer claimed ITC for FY 2018-19, the Court noted that once Section 16(5) of the CGST Act, 2017 was inserted, registered persons became entitled to claim ITC for past financial years provided their...