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...

Place Of Removal In FOR Sales Cannot Be Presumed As Factory Gate: CESTAT Chennai Reiterates

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has reiterated that the “place of removal” in FOR (Free on Road or Rail) destination sales cannot be mechanically assumed to be the factory gate and must be determined on the basis of facts and contractual terms. The tribunal set aside and remanded a service tax order denying CENVAT credit on outward transportation services after finding that the tax authorities had confirmed the demand without examining...

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...

IAF Runway Resurfacing Covered By Retrospective Service Tax Exemption: CESTAT Delhi Allows Infra Company's Plea

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) at New Delhi has recently set aside the rejection of a service tax refund claimed by G.R. Infraprojects Ltd. for resurfacing works carried out at an Indian Air Force runway. The tribunal held that the retrospective exemption restored by Parliament squarely applied in the instant case. In an order dated January 14, 2026, a coram comprising Judicial Member Binu Tamta and Technical Member Hemambika R. Priya set aside the orders of...

CESTAT Chennai Upholds Denial Of CENVAT Credit To Loyalty Management Firm, Holds Gift Voucher Supply Is Trading

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has ruled against Accentive (India) Private Limited, a loyalty management company, holding that it cannot retain CENVAT credit on goods and gift vouchers supplied under customer reward programmes because the activity amounts to trading. While the tribunal upheld the tax demands and interest running into crores of rupees, it waived penalties for periods prior to May 14, 2015. A bench of Judicial Member...

Indirect Tax Weekly Round-Up: January 12 - January 18, 2026

SUPREME COURTGST Appeal Pre-Deposit Refund Not Hit By Limitation Applicable To Other Refunds: Supreme CourtCase Title: State of Jharkhand & Ors. v. BLA Infrastructure Private Limited Case Number: Diary No. 56452/2025 Citation: 2026 LLBiz SC 5The Supreme Court has clarified that a taxpayer is entitled to a refund of the amount deposited for filing a GST appeal once the appeal succeeds. It has further held that such a refund cannot be denied by applying the general GST refund law or its...

Direct Tax Weekly Round-Up: January 12 - January 18, 2026

HIGH COURTSBombay HCBombay High Court Quashes Special Audit Order For Want Of Mandatory DINCase Name: Sanjay Nathalal Shah v. Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Central Circle 5(2) & Ors. Citation: 2026 LLBiz HC(BOM)16 Case Number: WRIT PETITION (L) NO. 19240 OF 2025The Bombay High Court has held that an approval for a special audit issued without a Document Identification Number (DIN) is invalid and deemed never to have been issued. A Division Bench of Justice B P Colabawalla and Justice...

Parts Used For Intelligent Manual Transmission Not Clutch Parts, CESTAT Rules In Hyundai Transys' Favour

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that auto parts imported by Hyundai Transys India Private Limited for use in intelligent manual transmission vehicles were wrongly classified by customs authorities, leading to unsustainable duty demands. A bench of Judicial Member P. Dinesha and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao ruled that the actuator assembly and tube connector assembly used in iMT vehicles cannot be treated as “clutches and parts...

Calcutta High Court Sets Aside GST Demand Over Reliance On Undisclosed Back Portal Data

The Calcutta High Court recently set aside a GST demand raised against a transport company after holding that the tax department relied on undisclosed back-office data.Justice O.M. Narayan Rai held that the tax department relied on “data available in GST B.O. portal”, leaving the petitioner without an effective opportunity to respond. The court focused on the manner in which the demand was raised in this case. It noted that the show-cause notices were founded on figures drawn from the GST...

Booking Speakers For Events Is Not Event Management, No Service Tax Under That Head: Supreme Court

Holding so, the Court quashed the service tax demand raised against HT Media for booking speakers through international agents for its Leadership Summit.

Free Materials In Works Contracts Pre-July 2009 Excludible From Service Tax: CESTAT Ahmedabad

On 15 January, the Ahmedabad Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that the value of free materials provided under an indivisible Works Contract cannot be included in taxable value for service tax purposes for contracts executed before 7 July 2009. A Bench comprising Judicial Member Dr. Ajaya Krishna Vishvesha and Technical Member Mr. Satendra Vikram Singh set aside the portion of the service tax demand calculated on 933.355 MT of steel, valued at Rs....

Realty Company's Sale of Long-Held Freehold Land Is Capital Gains Not Business Income: Madras Court

The Madras High Court has held that profits earned from the sale of decades-old freehold land must be taxed as capital gains and not as business income, rejecting the income tax department's attempt to treat the transaction as part of a real estate business. A division bench of Justices Anita Sumanth and Mummineni Sudheer Kumar said the record clearly showed that the land was held as a long-term asset and was sold without any development or trading activity. "The accounts reveal that the...