Bombay High Court Restrains GetShaadi.com For Infringing Shaadi.com Trademark, Imposes ₹25 Lakh Costs

The Bombay High Court has permanently restrained the operators of www.getshaadi.com, a matrimonial and matchmaking website, holding that it infringes and passes off the trademark Shaadi.com.In a judgment delivered on January 6, 2026, Justice Arif S Doctor ruled in favour of People Interactive, which operates the popular matrimonial platform “Shaadi.com.” The court held that the rival operator's adoption and use of “getshaadi.com” for identical matrimonial and matchmaking services violated...

Commercial Courts Cannot Hear Non-Commercial Arbitration Disputes Without Specified Claim Value: MP High Court

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has clarified that arbitration challenges arising from non-commercial disputes with no determinable monetary value cannot be heard by Commercial Courts, even if such courts function at the level of a Civil Judge (Senior Division). The court clarified that the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 applies only when two conditions are met, the dispute must be commercial in nature and must have a specified value as defined under the law. Justice Vivek Jain said that where...

Bombay High Court Quashes Tax Reassessment Against Hospital Over Unsigned Reopening Notice

The Bombay High Court has set aside reassessment and penalty proceedings against Ambernath City Hospital Pvt. Ltd., holding that the Income Tax Department lacked jurisdiction to reopen the assessment, as the mandatory notice issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, was unsigned.Relying on its own decision in Prakash Krishnavtar Bhardwaj vs. Income Tax Officer,(2023), the court held, “the Notice issued under Section 148, having no signature affixed to it, either digitally or...

Delhi High Court Orders Takedown Of Unauthorized Images of Youtuber Bhuvan Bam

Bhuvan Bam, a popular YouTube content creator and web-series actor, approached the Delhi High Court seeking protection of his personality rights and restraint against the unauthorized use of his images by various unknown individuals and entities.Justice Jyoti Singh, while hearing the matter on January 13, 2026, directed the takedown of the unauthorized images but declined to record any prima facie finding on the issue of personality rights at this stage.The Court orally observed that on the very...

Kerala General Sales Tax Act | Once Limitation Lapses, Assessment Cannot Be Revived: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has held that assessment proceedings initiated beyond the statutory limitation period under the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963 (KGST Act), are unsustainable in law and liable to be set aside. Justice Harisankar V. Menon noted that the pre-assessment notice under Section 17(3) of the KGST Act was issued against Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. for the assessment year 2007–08 only on August 25, 2017. The assessment order was passed later, on January 28, 2019. This was...

Promise To Arrange Funds In Case of Default Does Not Make Promoter A Guarantor: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of India has held that a promoter's promise to arrange funds to help a borrower meet financial covenants does not amount to a contract of guarantee under the Indian Contract Act and cannot be used to fasten insolvency liability on the promoter. A bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Alok Aradhe said that for an obligation to qualify as a guarantee under Section 126 of the Act, there must be a clear and unambiguous promise by the surety to repay the borrower's debt if the...

Delhi High Court Rejects Colgate Plea To Amend Suit Against Dabur Over Fluoride Ads

The Delhi High Court on Monday refused to allow Colgate-Palmolive to amend its 2019 plaint to specifically challenge Dabur's later newspaper advertisements, holding that fresh versions of an advertising campaign do not warrant repeated amendments when the issue is already pleaded.Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora, in an order dated January 12, 2026, clarified that Colgate's 2019 plaint contains detailed allegations accusing Dabur of spreading misleading information and disparaging fluoride as...

Employees Liable To Pay Tax Even If Employer Deducts TDS but Fails To Deposit It: Kerala High Court

Holding that employees cannot avoid their income tax liability merely because their employer deducted tax at source from their salaries but failed to deposit it with the Income Tax Department, the Kerala High Court has ruled that the statutory protection under Section 205 of the Income Tax Act applies only when the deducted tax is actually paid to the Central Government. A division bench of Justice A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Jobin Sebastian madethe ruling while dismissing writ...

Contractual Bar On Interest Binds Arbitrator; Delhi High Court Partly Sets Aside Award In BHEL–Delkon Dispute

In a dispute involving public sector undertaking Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, the Delhi High Court has set aside a ₹66.50 lakh interest component of an arbitral award that had directed BHEL to pay Delkon India Private Limited. The court held that an arbitral tribunal cannot award interest where the contract expressly prohibits it, even if the termination of the contract is found to be illegal. A division bench of Justice V. Kameswar Rao and Justice Vinod Kumar ruled that the contractual...

GST Notices And Orders Issued Only In Summary Forms Without Details Are Unsustainable: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court has quashed a GST adjudication order passed solely through summary online forms, holding that tax liability cannot be imposed without clearly setting out the allegations and reasons as required under law. A single-judge bench of Justice Om Narayan Rai said the manner in which the proceedings were conducted could not be sustained. “The order that has been passed and communicated to the petitioner has remained in summary form. It is bereft of any detail and sans any...

No GST On Assignment Of Long-Term Leasehold Rights: Bombay High Court Quashes Notice Against MIDC Unit

The Bombay High Court at Nagpur on Friday has set aside a GST show cause notice seeking to tax the assignment of long-term leasehold rights. The court held that such a transaction is a transfer of benefits arising out of immovable property and is not a taxable “supply” under the GST law. A division bench of Justice Anil L. Pansare and Justice Nivedita P. Mehta said the tax department had wrongly treated the transaction as a service. Agreeing with the Gujarat High Court in Gujarat Chamber of...

Arbitration | Mechanical Reliance On No Claim Certificate Is Non-Adjudication: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court has recently held that mechanical reliance on a 'No Claim Certificate,' without examining whether the claims raised were covered by such document, amounts to non-adjudication.A Single Bench of Justice Gaurang Kanth in an order dated January 9 explained that the mechanical reliance on such certificates, without examining the surrounding facts and evidence, amounts to non-adjudication and renders the award vulnerable to challenge. The Court observed:“Even execution of a...