Online Gaming, Reliance Petroleum Share Sale Case, Amazon-Future Deal & More

“Fiscal certainty in emerging technological sectors is not merely a matter concerning individual assessees. It bears directly upon investor confidence, digital entrepreneurship, technological innovation, interstate commerce and India’s broader aspiration to emerge as a leading digital economy. Predictability, consistency and coherence in taxation jurisprudence are therefore indispensable components of sound economic governance.”

-Supreme Court in its judgment on retrospective GST on online gaming companies

One Day, Two Judgments and the Future of an Entire Industry
The Supreme Court’s two rulings on May 27 mark a watershed moment for India’s online gaming industry. By upholding both retrospective GST demands and power of states to regulate or ban real-money gaming, the court has effectively ended years of legal uncertainty that the sector faced. 

The immediate impact is likely to be severe. Mounting tax liabilities, higher compliance costs and regulatory unpredictability could push several operators out of the market while deterring fresh investment. For an industry that was once among India’s fastest-growing digital sectors, the judgments represent a sharp reality check.

Yet the rulings may ultimately create a more stable ecosystem. Companies that survive will have to prioritise compliance, transparency and sustainable revenue models over aggressive expansion. The industry is unlikely to completely disappear, but it will change shape and form, emerge smaller, much more regulated than before and with way fewer players.

Key Judgments:

• Supreme Court sets aside a SAT ruling which affirmed SEBI’s order alleging fraudulent activities and manipulation of share price in Reliance Petroleum share sale; top court sets aside disgorgement order and orders refund of 2.5 billion rupees deposited by the company 

• Supreme Court quashes antitrust fine of 2.02 billion rupees imposed by the Competition Commission of India on Amazon.com investments in relation to its 2019 investment deal with Future Coupons

• Retrospective GST levy of 28% on entirety of money staked by online gamers upheld by the Supreme Court in a blow to the online gaming companies looking at billions in tax liability

• The Supreme Court upholds the right of the state governments to impose a complete ban on online gaming with real money in their states

• Supreme Court upholds the validity of the voter revision exercise in Bihar

Courts: 

• Delhi High Court has held that the safety analysis report of Kudankulam Nuclear Power plant is exempt from RTI

• Delhi High Court says customers cannot blame banks for falling prey to fraud due to clicking suspicious links despite adequate warnings

• Madhya Pradesh High Court seeks response from central and state government over death of eight tigers in Kanha National Park

• Supreme Court has rejected a fresh petition seeking a fresh probe into the functioning and operations of Reliance group’s Vantara citing earlier green chit

• Delhi High Court dismisses petition by Pernod Ricard over denial of wholesale license to sell its liquor in Delhi over pending excise policy case

• Delhi High Court imposes a fine on Google for misusing Hindware’s trademark as keyword in Google ads

• Immediate relief for restoring Cockroach Janta Party’s X account denied by Delhi High Court; court seeks ministry’s response

• Allahabad High Court quashed criminal complaint filed against Wipro’s Azim Premji in a labour law case

• Supreme Court denies request for urgent hearing on petition seeking a probe into activities connected to the Cockroach Janata Party founder and members

Others:

• Senior Advocate and Rajya Sabha member Menaka Guruswamy nominated to the joint committee on Corporate Laws Amendment Bill

• Singapore court sentences Byju Raveendran to six months imprisonment in a contempt of court case

The Big Listings:

• Supreme Court will be on summer break this week

• Jun 23: Securities Appellate Tribunal to hear appeal by Jane Street challenging SEBI’s move to allegedly refuse access to important documents to the firm in the case against it

• Jul 15: Delhi High Court to hear Apple Inc.’s plea against India’s competition law’s provisions on global turnover-based penalties on MNC

• July: Supreme Court to hear PIL petition seeking tighter probe into Anil Ambani’s fraud allegations

• Jul 27: Delhi High Court to hear Anil Ambani’s defamation lawsuit against NDTV

* The dates of hearing can change and a concrete list is prepared just a day before

Legal Moves: 

• Supreme Court collegium recommends elevation to Supreme Court of:

• Justices Sheel Nagu, Shree Chandrashekhar, Sanjeev Sachdeva, Arun Palli

• Senior Advocate V Mohana

• Supreme Court collegium recommends making Justice Meenakshi M Rai as Patna High Court chief justice

• Uttarakhand High Court judge Justice Alok Kumar Verma resigns

• Centre notifies appointment of three judicial officers as judges of the Karnataka High Court

• ELP announced annual promotions across partnership and director roles

• Panag, Babu & Sarangi elevate three to partnership

• Raunaq Bahadur Mathur and Ramya Suresh leave Saraf & Partners for own practice

• Susmit Pushkar leaves Khaitan & Co. to set up own practice

• Seven lawyers made partners at Dua Associates

• Four lawyers made associate partners during annual promotions at AQUILAW

• Khizer A Qureshi and Abhishek Sharma made partners at Emerald Law Offices