Orissa High Court Grants Interim Stay On ₹512 Crores GST Levy On Assignment Of Right To Use Natural Resources

The Orissa High Court on Thursday, in a plea by ESL Steel concerning the levy of GST on assignment of right to use natural resources as well as statutory charged paid on stamp duty, registration fees, payments for Compensatory Afforestation Fund (CAF), etc, has granted interim stay against GST demand of INR 512 Crores (plus interest and penalty). The Chief Justice Harish Tandon and...

Delhi High Court Revives Street One's Opposition To Registration Of the 'Street 9' Trademark

The Delhi High Court has overturned a Trade Marks Registry order that had rejected an objection filed by German fashion label Street One against the registration of the mark “Street 9.” The court has sent the matter back to the registry for a fresh hearing. In a judgment dated November 28, 2025, Justice Tejas Karia held that the Registrar failed to correctly apply the law on...

Calcutta High Court Injuncts Two Baidyanath Chyawanprash Ads on Dabur's Plea, Says Edits Cannot Cure Disparagement

The Calcutta High Court has barred Shree Baidyanath Ayurved Bhawan Pvt. Ltd. from using two chyawanprash advertisements after holding that removing a single claim about ingredient count would not eliminate the overall disparaging portrayal of rival brands, including Dabur India Limited. A division bench of Justice Debangsu Basak and Justice Md. Shabbar Rashidi delivered the decision on...

Section 36 After 2015 Amendment: Security As Price Of A Stay

It has been a decade since the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Act, 2015 (2015 Amendment) came into force and fundamentally altered arbitration in India. One of the most important changes the 2015 amendment brought in was the insertion of a new section 36, which removed automatic stays of awards upon the filing of a challenge under Section 34.Post the 2015 amendment, unconditional stays of arbitral awards are rare, especially when the award directs payment to the successful...

NCLT Chandigarh Clears Demerger Of Freecharge's Business Correspondent And Technology Services Unit

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) at Chandigarh has approved a scheme under which Freecharge Payment Technologies Private Limited will transfer its business correspondent activities and its technology service provider activities to a new entity, Freecharge Business and Technology Services Limited.The order was passed on December 10, 2025, by Judicial Member Khetrabasi Biswal and...

Civil Suit, Anticipatory Bail Application Filed After CIRP Plea Cannot Amount To Pre-Existing Dispute: NCLAT

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) at New Delhi recently held that civil proceedings or anticipatory bail applications filed after a Section 9 CIRP plea cannot be used to claim a pre-existing dispute or block the admission of a valid insolvency petition. The tribunal affirmed the NCLT Indore's order admitting a Section 9-CIRP application against Steelexpert Industries...

Income Tax | Reassessment Cannot Be Initiated On Identical Survey Material Already Accepted In Earlier Proceedings: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court held that reassessment under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act is impermissible when it is based on the same survey material that the Assessing Officer (AO) has already examined and accepted in earlier proceedings. Justice Om Narayan Rai stated that the reassessment proceeding is clearly impermissible………It would be a clear case of “change...

Settlement Fixing Payment Terms Doesn't Novate Or Change Debt's Nature: NCLT Mumbai Reaffirms

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) at Mumbai recently reaffirmed that a settlement agreement that merely prescribes the mode and schedule of payment does not extinguish or alter the nature of an operational debt and does not create any pre-existing dispute. A coram of Judicial Member Nilesh Sharma and Technical Member Sameer Kakar, while admitting Sparklet Engineers Pvt Ltd, an oil...

Delhi High Court Rejects DDA's Arbitration Appeal, Holds Revaluation Of Evidence Impermissible U/S 37 A&C Act

The Delhi High Court on December 11, 2025 upheld an Arbitral Award that favoured a contractor, M/s Harjinder Brothers, in a dispute over encashment of a bank guarantee and non-payment of "watch and ward" security expenses, dismissing an appeal filed by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA). The Court presided by Hon'ble Justice Chandrasekharan Sudha reaffirmed that the appellate courts are...

Customs Act | Mens Rea Mandatory For Penalty U/S 114AA; Assessee Cannot Be Punished On Assumptions: CESTAT Chennai

The Chennai Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that a penalty under Section 114AA of the Customs Act cannot be imposed unless the department proves mens rea and a clear act of abetment with cogent evidence. The Tribunal clarified that Section 114 has a penal character of being a penalty in personam, placing the burden squarely on the...

SRA Cannot Seek Interest On Performance Bank Guarantee If Letter Of Intent Does Not Provide For It: NCLAT

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) at Chennai has ruled that a successful resolution applicant (SRA) whose resolution plan was scrapped after the Committee of Creditors opted for liquidation, cannot claim interest on his performance bank guarantee if the Letter of Intent and the Request for Resolution Plan issued by the Resolution Professional does not provide for it. A coram...

How 2025 Reshaped Boundaries Of Resolution Estate Under Insolvency And Bankruptcy Code 2016

November 2025, brought with it major advancements into the debt restructuring ecosystem of India that reshape the contours of India's resolution estate under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 ('the Code')[1].First is the circular dated 4th November 2025 ('the Circular') issued by the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India ('IBBI') which permits insolvency professionals to seek restoration of assets attached under the provision of Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 ('PMLA')[2],...