Editorial May 2026
Dear Readers,
During the month of May 2026 the ceasefire of the Iran War brought remained volatile and tenuous, leading to a sharp depreciation of the Indian Rupee and increase in oil prices. The IPL season 2026 came to an end during the month with RCB and GT in the final match of the T20 tournament. The IPL has become the worlds second most valuable sports league after the USA NFL, largely due to huge fan following in India for cricket.
In a major relief enhancing the ease of doing business in India, the Honorable Supreme Court of India has issued deadlines by way of a directive to all High Courts to issue reserved judgement within 3 months, non compliance or inordinate delay may lead to reallocation to another Bench and if reasons are not uploaded within 30 days, case can be withdrawn to a fresh Bench.
On the Indirect tax front, in a landmark judgement of the Hon’ble Supreme Court the constitutional validity of bringing organized online gaming with money stakes within the ambit of GST regime has been upheld. The said activity has been classified under betting and gambling irrespective of whether the underlying game is one of chance or skill. The GST amendment of 2023 which imposed GST on the entire face value of the deposit in online gaming and not merely on the platform fee has been also upheld. The judgement has far reaching consequences on the entire online gaming industry.
On the Direct tax front, the Hon’ble High Court of Gujrat at Ahmedabad has held that income tax demands raised in respect of a company undergoing CIRP under IBC cannot sustain where these demands are not part of the Resolution Plan approved by NCLT. This follows the Clean Slate Doctrine laid down by the Hon’ble Supreme Court.
On the Assurance front, the NFRA has issued the Audit Quality Inspection Guidelines 2026 to ensure that audit firms and chartered accountants maintain robust review mechanism. As compared to the earlier 2022 Guidelines, the new Guidelines transition from a compliance driven to a risk based, tech enabled enforcement framework with tighter timelines.
We would like to take this opportunity of wishing all our readers all the best for Fathers Day on June 21. On this day we honour and celebrate the profound impact of fathers, grandfathers on individual lives and society as a whole.