SANJIV KHANNA

The Supreme Court was asked to resolve a long‑standing controversy over whether courts exercising jurisdiction under Sections 34 and 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 can modify an arbitral award. The issue arose from the earlier decision in Project Director, NHAI v. M. Hakeem, where the Court held that …

The case concerned whether cellular mobile service providers (the assessees) were required to deduct tax at source under section 194-H of the Income Tax Act, 1961 on the margin earned by franchisees/distributors from selling prepaid kits at a price higher than the discounted price paid to the assessees. The Revenue arg…

The Madhya Pradesh Road Development Corporation sought to acquire land for a highway project and determined compensation using the circle rate fixed under the Indian Stamp Act, as prescribed by the Collector’s Guidelines. The landowners challenged the award, arguing that the compensation was excessive and that the "the…

The petitioners challenged the constitutional validity of the amendments to the Customs Act, 1962 and the arrest provisions in the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, arguing that offences under these statutes remain non‑cognizable and that authorized officers must obtain a magistrate's warrant, relying on the Om…

The State of Karnataka appealed against the Karnataka High Court’s order acquitting a government servant, Chandrasha, who was convicted under Sections 7 and 13(1)(d) read with 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 2,000 to facilitate the encashment of surrender‑leave …

The petitioners challenged the 1976 insertion of the words ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ into the Preamble of the Constitution, arguing that the amendment was retrospective, lacked popular consent, and violated the basic structure by restricting economic policy and religious freedom. The Court examined whether Article 368 …

The case concerned several Government Orders (GoMs) issued by the Andhra Pradesh (now Telangana) government that allotted public land at basic rates to a select class of persons – MPs, MLAs, All India Services officers, judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts, and journalists – through cooperative societies. The pe…

The appeal concerned whether a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution can be filed against an order of the Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council (MSEFC) made under Section 18 of the MSMED Act, 2006, and if so, under what circumstances. The Supreme Court examined earlier conflicting judgments, no…

The appellant, Santosh @ Rajesh @ Gopal, was convicted for the murder of Narayan Singh based on the recovery of a pistol from his possession and a ballistic report linking the weapon to the fatal bullet. The prosecution’s case relied on a disclosure statement made by a co-accused, which led to the discovery of the pist…

The case concerned whether pure coconut oil sold in small retail packs (5 ml‑2 L) should be classified as ‘edible oil’ under Heading 1513 of Chapter 15 or as ‘hair oil’ under Heading 3305 of Chapter 33 in the First Schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985. The respondents marketed the oil as edible oil, while th…

Disortho S.A.S., a Colombian company, and Meril Life Sciences, an Indian company, entered an International Exclusive Distributor Agreement for medical products in Colombia. Clause 16.5 of the agreement states that Indian law governs the contract and Gujarat courts have jurisdiction, while Clause 18 provides for concili…

The appellant, Sundew Properties Ltd., was notified by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry as a developer of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and claimed that, under the 2010 Notification inserting a proviso to section 14(b) of the Electricity Act, it automatically became a deemed distribution licensee without needing to …

The appellants, Rikhab Birani and Sadhna Birani, entered into an oral agreement to sell a godown for Rs 1.35 crore, which the buyer, Shilpi Gupta, failed to fully pay, leading the sellers to re‑sell the property at a lower price. The buyer subsequently approached the Metropolitan Magistrate to register an FIR alleging …

Bhushan Steel (now Tata Steel) filed a suit in the Delhi High Court against several parties, including Arcadia Shipping, alleging non‑payment under a Letter of Credit for galvanized steel shipped from Mumbai to Djibouti. The plaintiff claimed that the cause of action arose in Delhi because the supply order and payment …

The Supreme Court heard applications arising from the long‑standing illegal mining controversy in Bellary, Chitradurga and Tumkur districts of Karnataka. The petitioners sought directions for demarcating seven mining leases that straddle the Karnataka‑Andhra Pradesh boundary, for the implementation of Reclamation and R…

M/s ABCI Infrastructures Pvt. Ltd. submitted a financial bid of Rs 1,569 crores for a tunnel project but due to a typographical error the bid appeared as Rs 1,569 only. The appellant discovered the mistake on 24‑08‑2023, promptly informed BRO and sought to withdraw or rectify the bid, but BRO demanded justification, de…

The Supreme Court had earlier declared the Electoral Bond Scheme unconstitutional and directed the State Bank of India (SBI), as the authorized bank, to furnish the Election Commission of India (ECI) with details of each bond purchased and redeemed between 12 April 2019 and 15 February 2024. SBI filed a Miscellaneous A…

Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi, was arrested on 21 March 2024 by the Directorate of Enforcement in connection with alleged offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act and related statutes. He challenged the arrest before the Supreme Court, arguing that the legality of his detention was sub judic…

The appellants, who claimed to have purchased 94.8% of the equity shares of M/s. Lexus Technologies Pvt. Ltd., filed a company petition before the NCLT seeking rectification of the Register of Members under Sections 59 and 88 of the Companies Act, 2013 and relief for oppression, mismanagement and fraud. The NCLT, and s…

The husband, Dinesh Kumar Mahto, obtained a decree for restitution of conjugal rights against his wife, Reena, in 2022, yet she continued to live apart, alleging mental cruelty, dowry demands, and a miscarriage. Reena filed a maintenance suit under Section 125 of the CrPC in 2019 and was awarded ₹10,000 per month. The …

The appellants purchased goods from dealers who were exempt from sales tax under the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963 and the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959, and challenged the levy of purchase tax under s.5A of the Kerala Act and s.7A of the Tamil Nadu Act. The questions were whether such purchases constitut…

R.K. Pandey, a former lab assistant of a state‑run medical college, claimed that his superannuation age should be 60 years and sought relief through arbitration, relying on an alleged 1957 arbitration agreement between the municipal board and the Governor of Uttar Pradesh. He unilaterally appointed two arbitrators who …

The All India Bank Officers’ Confederation and other bank staff unions challenged Section 17(2)(viii) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 and Rule 3(7)(i) of the Income Tax Rules, 1962, alleging that they amounted to an excessive delegation of the essential legislative function to the Central Board of Direct Taxes and that the…

The case arose from a suspected romantic relationship between Ziaul Rahman and his cousin Tanu. After Ziaul’s death in a physical assault, Tanu allegedly committed suicide, and the complainant Vijay (R‑2) filed an FIR accusing the appellants of abetting her suicide under Section 306 IPC. The High Court refused to quash…

The West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) conducted a 2016 recruitment for assistant teachers and non‑teaching staff that was later found to involve massive irregularities, including rank‑jumping, out‑of‑panel appointments, manipulation of OMR scores, destruction of original answer sheets and illegal subcontrac…

DBS Bank Limited Singapore extended a USD 50 million loan to Ruchi Soya Industries Limited, secured by first charges over immovable assets. A resolution plan was approved by the Committee of Creditors with 96.95% support, but DBS dissented, receiving a pro‑rata distribution that was lower than the liquidation value of …

The Supreme Court examined three criminal appeals arising from chargesheets filed in Uttar Pradesh that were alleged to lack sufficient factual detail and evidence under Section 173(2) of the CrPC. It considered whether a chargesheet must contain detailed facts and material evidence to enable a magistrate to take cogni…