Supreme Court & High Courts
Bombay High Court Overturns Arbitral Award Granting Toll Loss Relief Based On Pre-Contract Meeting Minutes
The Bombay High Court has set aside an arbitral award that granted toll loss compensation to a private concessionaire by treating pre-contract Minutes of Meeting as a binding part of the contract. Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan held that the arbitral tribunal had misread the contract, effectively converting a force majeure clause into a guaranteed revenue mechanism. The Court said this interpretation was an “impossible view,” “irrational,” and suffered from “manifest perversity,” and held...
'Full and Final' Settlement Does Not Bar Arbitration On Fresh Disputes: Delhi High Court Reiterates
The Delhi High Court has reiterated that a “full and final” settlement does not automatically bar arbitration if fresh disputes arise from the settlement's implementation and the parties have agreed to arbitrate such disputes. A single-judge bench of Justice Jyoti Singh ruled that an arbitration clause incorporated in a settlement agreement and reflected in a consent award constitutes a valid arbitration agreement under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. The court clarified that...
Delhi High Court Lifts Injunction On BONERICH In Dispute With Pharma Mark BONRICH
The Delhi High Court has set aside an interim injunction granted in favour of Invision Medi Sciences Pvt. Ltd., a Bengaluru-based pharmaceutical company using the mark “BONRICH,” which had restrained Kedar Nath Mishra, the proprietor of the “BONERICH” mark, from using that mark for competing pharmaceutical products.In a judgment dated January 13, 2026, a Division Bench of Justice C Hari Shankar and Justice Om Prakash Shukla allowed the appeals filed by Mishra against the order of the Commercial...
Kerala High Court Upholds Order Against Detention Of Hindustan Coca-Cola's Goods In GST Dispute
The Kerala High Court has dismissed a writ appeal filed by the state tax authorities against Hindustan Coca Cola Private Limited over the detention of its goods during transit under the GST Act. The court held that the detention was not justified because the consignment was accompanied by all required documents. A Division Bench of Justice V.G. Arun and Justice Harisankar V. Menon said proceedings under Section 129 of the Central and State GST Acts were not called for in the facts of the...
Delhi High Court Upholds Rejection of Japanese Firm's Patent Bid For Worm-Based Cancer Detection
The Delhi High Court has upheld the rejection of a patent application for a cancer detection technique that relies on the smell responses of worms, holding that it is a non-patentable diagnostic method under Indian law. In a judgment delivered on January 17, 2026, a Single-Judge Bench of Justice Tejas Karia dismissed the appeal filed by Hirotsu Bio Science Inc., holding that the company's cancer detection method amounts to a diagnostic process barred from patent protection under Section...
Kerala HC Grants Interim Relief To Retired Union Bank Employees From GST On Group Health Insurance Premium
The Kerala High Court on Monday granted interim relief to retired employees and family pensioners of Union Bank of India. It directed the Union government, GST authorities, and Union Bank of India not to levy GST on health insurance premiums paid under the group medical insurance policy for the policy year 2025–26. A Division Bench of Justices V.G. Arun and Harisankar V. Menon passed the order while admitting a writ appeal against a Single Bench decision. The Bench said, “Till then, there...
Supreme Court Quashes Gujarat HC Order To Modify Income Tax Software To Prevent TDS-Default Demands Against Deductee
The Supreme Court on January 12, 2026, set aside directions issued by the Gujarat High Court requiring the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to modify the income-tax department's software. The court, however, left untouched the relief granted to the taxpayer on merits. A bench of Justices Rajesh Bindal and Vijay Bishnoi was hearing an appeal filed by the Income Tax Department against a Gujarat High Court order passed in favour of Shobhan Shantilal Doshi, an individual taxpayer. The Court...
Mortgagor's Right Of Redemption Prevails Over Auction Purchaser's Claim Of Title: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has reiterated that while an auction purchaser acquires certain rights upon being declared the successful bidder, such rights are not absolute and cannot override the statutory right of redemption available to the mortgagor under law.The court said once the borrower exercises the right of redemption by clearing the dues before the transfer of the secured asset, the auction purchaser cannot claim an indefeasible right over the property.A single bench of Justice Ajay Kumar...
Pornographic Deepfake Content Depicting 'Slayy Point' Creators Violated Privacy: Delhi High Court
The Delhi High Court has recently ordered the immediate takedown of pornographic, morphed and AI-generated deepfake content falsely depicting the creators of the YouTube channel “Slayy Point,” holding that such material is a prima facie breach of their fundamental right to privacy.Justice Vikas Mahajan passed the ad interim injunction order on January 13, 2026, while allowing an application filed in a suit seeking protection against the circulation of non-consensual explicit content across...
Bombay High Court Grants Relief to Y-NOT Films, Disallows Income Tax Refund Adjustment Beyond 20% Of Disputed Demand
Granting relief to Y-NOT Films LLP, the Bombay High Court reiterated that the Income Tax Department could not take the entire tax refund of a later year to recover an earlier tax demand that is still under appeal. The court said that in such situations, the tax department can normally adjust only 20% of the disputed amount, unless senior tax authorities specifically approve a higher recovery. A Division Bench of Justices B.P. Colabawalla and Firdosh P. Pooniwalla was hearing a petition filed...