legal excellence since 1943

Introduction The Indian government has implemented a host of reforms to liberalize India’s foreign direct investment (“FDI”) regime.  Last week, the Indian government issued guidelines clarifying the FDI policy in the e-commerce sector, and has also further liberalized FDI in the insurance and pension sectors. This update discusses these recent changes announced by the Indian…

Introduction In India, the SEBI (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Regulations, 2011 (the “Takeover Regulations”) adopt a mandatory tender offer regime for acquisition of listed companies in order to provide a level playing field to the public shareholders.  The acquisition of a substantial shareholding stake and the acquisition of control are treated equally and…

Introduction India’s Union Budget (the “Budget”) was announced on February 29, 2016, and the Finance Bill, 2016 (the “Finance Bill”) was tabled in Parliament.  Most of the income tax proposals in the Finance Bill will be effective from the financial year commencing on April 1, 2016, unless specified otherwise.  The Finance Bill will be discussed…

Introduction On October 23, 2015, when the Indian Parliament was in recess, the President of India promulgated the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2015 (the “Arbitration Ordinance”). The Arbitration Ordinance temporarily amended the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (the “Arbitration Act”) as regards certain key provisions.  However, upon the Parliament resuming business, the Government of…

Introduction In 2015, Indian securities regulations underwent many changes with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (the “SEBI”) playing an active role in making the markets more efficient and investor friendly.  This update highlights some of the important changes implemented last year. New insider trading regulations Previously, insider trading was regulated under the SEBI…

Introduction On November 30, 2015, the Reserve Bank of India (the “RBI”) revamped the regime governing external commercial borrowings (“ECBs”) by Indian companies and introduced a revised framework (the “Revised Framework”). The Revised Framework significantly relaxes the rules on permitted lenders, rupee denominated borrowings (“RDBs”) and long term foreign currency denominated borrowings (“LTBs”). The Revised…

Introduction The real estate sector in India forms a critical component of the Indian economy and contributes 5-6% to the GDP. Although this sector has stagnated over the last couple of years, it has started to show a turnaround, and growth is expected on the back of a rising economy.  In terms of foreign direct…

Introduction India stands committed to having a Foreign Direct Investment (“FDI”) regime that is investor friendly and promotes foreign investment for overall economic growth.  Since the Modi government came to power in June 2014, many FDI policy reforms were made in sectors such as defence, rail infrastructure, construction development, insurance, pension, medical devices and others. …

Sasan Power Limited v. North America Coal Corporation The often debated question of whether two (or more) Indian parties can opt for a foreign seat of arbitration has surfaced again.  The Madhya Pradesh High Court (the “MP HC”) has, in the case of Sasan Power Limited v. North American Coal Corporation (the “Sasan Case”), held…

Recently, in the case of Wipro Limited (the “Taxpayer”), the Karnataka High Court (the “KHC”) has held that a foreign tax credit can be claimed against Indian income under the provisions of section 90(1)(a)(i) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (the “Act”),  irrespective of the fact that the income is eligible for a deduction under section…