Karnataka High Court Refuses Winzo US Plea To Transfer PMLA-Attached Funds To Another US Bank

The Karnataka High Court on 9 October refused to permit Winzo US Inc. to transfer funds held in its attached Silicon Valley Bank accounts to another bank in the United States, while allowing it to approach the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to seek transfer of the funds to the agency's designated account in India. Justice C.M. Poonacha noted that funds already covered by attachment orders cannot be transferred in a manner that could dilute the effect of the attachment and its confirmation under...

Karnataka High Court Upholds Reitzel India Relief, Says Export Incentives Count As Operating Income

The Karnataka High Court on 8 October dismissed the Income Tax Department's appeal against an Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) order directing it to include export incentives received by Reitzel India Pvt. Ltd. in its operating income while determining the arm's length price (ALP) of international transactions. A Division Bench comprising Justices S.G. Pandit and Chillakur Sumalatha held that export incentives directly linked to a taxpayer's export business must be included in operating...

Karnataka High Court Directs Refund Of ₹15.41 Lakh Deducted From Iron Ore Auction Proceeds, Awards 8% Interest

The Karnataka High Court has directed the State government to refund ₹15.41 lakh deducted from the refund due to an iron ore auction purchaser after the auction failed because the ore was not available at the site. The Court also awarded interest at 8% per annum on the amount of ₹2.89 crore deposited by the purchaser, holding that the State cannot retain money without providing the corresponding consideration.A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice K.S. Hemalekha held...

Karnataka High Court Quashes Reassessment Over ₹13.39 Crore Turnover Without Supporting Computation

The Karnataka High Court on 7 October set aside an income tax reassessment order against Kunjalu Venkatesh Kini over alleged non-disclosure of business turnover of Rs. 13.39 crore, holding that the Income Tax Department must disclose the computation and supporting material before proceeding with reassessment. Justice B.M. Shyam Prasad partly allowed Kini's petition and quashed the order passed under Section 148A(3) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, the related approval and the consequential...

Karnataka High Court Refuses To Quash Case Against Super Royal Holidays Directors For Ignoring Summons

The Karnataka High Court on 17 October dismissed a petition filed by Madhukar and Prashanth Bhadrappan, directors of Super Royal Holidays (India) Private Limited, challenging criminal proceedings for alleged non-compliance with an investigation under the Companies Act, 2013. Justice H.P. Sandesh held that the Special Court for Economic Offences, Bengaluru, had applied its mind to the complaint and accompanying documents before taking cognizance of the alleged offence under Section 217(4) of the...

Lawyer's Assumption That Judgment Was Postponed Cannot Justify IRCT's Delayed Appeal: Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court has recently ruled that a lawyer's assumption that judgment would be postponed cannot justify a delayed appeal. The failure to check whether the judgment was subsequently delivered remained unexplained.Dismissing a commercial appeal filed by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) against Amulya Enterprises, the court refused to condone a 92-day delay in challenging a Commercial Court decree dated June 11, 2024.A Division Bench of Justice Anu...

Karnataka High Court Appoints Arbitrator In ₹2.53 Cr. Dispute Concerning Military Engineer Services

The Karnataka High Court on 8 October appointed retired District Judge Prabhavathi Hiremath as the sole arbitrator to resolve contractual disputes between Varsha Constructions and the Military Engineer Services over the construction of an Academic Block at the Air Force Technical College in Jalahalli, Bengaluru.A Single Judge Bench of Justice H.T. Narendra Prasad observed: “Having regard to the existence of the arbitration clause contained in the Construction Agreement, which provides for...

Karnataka High Court Upholds Unishire Property Attachment, Says Final K-RERA Order Can't Be Reopened

The Karnataka High Court on 6 October held that a developer cannot challenge a consequential property attachment after its appeal against the underlying Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (K-RERA) order has been dismissed and the order has attained finality. Justice E.S. Indiresh dismissed Unishire Promoters Private Limited's writ petition and upheld the attachment of its property in Bengaluru to recover unpaid dues owed to a homebuyer. The Bench observed: “In that view of the matter,...

Arbitrator Can't Make Independent Lease Termination Right Conditional On Default: Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court on 16 September held that an arbitrator cannot interpret a contract in a manner that nullifies an independent right of termination expressly provided under its terms. A Division Bench comprising Justices D.K. Singh and H. Shanthi Bhushan dismissed an appeal filed by Padma, the landlord's legal representative, and upheld the Bengaluru Commercial Court's decision to partly set aside an arbitral award against Capgemini Technology Services India Limited. It observed: ...

Karnataka High Court Upholds Cancellation Of Occupancy Certificates For 33 Raffles Park Villas

The Karnataka High Court has recently upheld the cancellation of occupancy certificates issued for 33 villas in Raffles Residency Private Limited's Raffles Park project in Bengaluru, finding that the project was incomplete and unfit for occupation when the certificates were issued.Justice Suraj Govindaraj recalled an earlier order that had restored the certificates, finding that the developer had suppressed material documentary evidence bearing on the project's completion.The court observed that...

Karnataka High Court Refuses Relief in ₹22 Lakh Foreign Investment Case and Wealth Tax Return Default

The Karnataka High Court on 9 October dismissed two criminal petitions by Pradeep, a taxpayer, which sought to quash prosecution for allegedly failing to file wealth tax returns and to challenge the rejection of his discharge application in a separate case involving alleged false statements about investments worth approximately Rs. 22 lakh in two foreign companies. Justice H.P. Sandesh held that prosecution for failure to furnish wealth tax returns can proceed without a completed assessment...

Arbitration Clause Requiring Fresh Mutual Consent Is Not Binding: Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court has refused to appoint an arbitrator in a dispute between Riemen Solution Private Limited and Swiggy Limited, holding that a contractual clause making arbitration conditional on fresh mutual consent does not constitute a binding arbitration agreement.“The Court can neither delete these words from the Agreement, nor rewrite the bargain between the parties by converting a conditional reference to arbitration into an unconditional one,” Justice H T Narendra Prasad held...