FORM GSTR-1 filing deadline for registered persons furnishing returns under the regular return mechanism for the March 2024 tax period was extended until 12 April 2024. The extension excludes persons required to furnish returns under the specified proviso to that mechanism. The amendment inserts an additional proviso in the earlier notification and is deemed effective from 11 April 2024.

Halal certification requirements for exports of specified meat and meat products to Egypt are subject to an extended transition period under the mandatory India Conformity Assessment Scheme (i-CAS)-Halal. The implementation period is revised from six months to nine months to facilitate system readiness and completion of onboarding and accreditation of Egyptian Halal certification bodies. All other export conditions remain unchanged.

Draft guidelines for 'on tap' licensing of Urban Co-operative Banks have been issued for public and stakeholder consultation. Comments and feedback may be submitted until September 05, 2026, through the designated online consultation facility or by written or email submission to the specified regulatory department.

Foreign direct investment policy permits an e-commerce entity to use an inventory-based e-commerce model exclusively to export goods or products manufactured or produced in India. Such exports must comply with the applicable Foreign Trade Policy, Handbook of Procedures, and foreign-exchange regulations governing exports. Existing restrictions on business-to-consumer and inventory-based e-commerce do not apply to this export-only model from the date of the relevant foreign-exchange notification.

Import prohibition on goods originating in Pakistan applies to direct and indirect imports under the Foreign Trade Policy, 2023. Pakistan-origin dry dates routed through the UAE were allegedly declared as UAE-origin goods for import, and were intercepted under the Customs Act, 1962. Investigation indicated that the goods were first sent from Pakistan to Dubai, re-containerised, and then exported to India. A separate interception involved Pakistan-origin guggul resin allegedly declared as Somali natural resin and routed through Dubai.

Foreign direct investment from countries sharing a land border with India requires the Government route where the investor or beneficial owner falls within the prescribed restriction. A subsequent direct or indirect ownership transfer causing beneficial ownership to fall within that restriction requires prior Government approval. Beneficial ownership may arise through ownership above applicable thresholds, control of the investor entity, or ultimate effective control over the Indian investee entity. Other covered investments not requiring approval are subject to prescribed reporting, alongside sectoral caps, entry routes, and attendant conditions.

Registered persons with aggregate turnover of up to two crore rupees in financial year 2023-24 are exempt from filing the annual return for that year. The exemption is issued under the first proviso to section 44 of the Telangana Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, on the Council's recommendations.

Foreign direct investment in Indian insurance companies and insurance intermediaries is permitted up to 100 per cent under the Automatic Route, subject to insurance regulatory verification, licensing, applicable insurance law and foreign-investment rules. Insurance companies with foreign investment must maintain a resident Indian citizen in specified senior leadership roles. Foreign-majority-owned intermediaries must be limited companies, maintain prescribed resident Indian leadership, bring skills and disclose specified related-entity payments. Foreign investment in the Life Insurance Corporation of India remains capped at 20 per cent under the Automatic Route.

Monetary policy maintains the benchmark policy rate unchanged and retains a neutral stance, with future decisions guided by incoming data. The central bank remains committed to aligning headline inflation with its medium-term target while monitoring food, fuel and other input-cost risks. Surplus liquidity will be managed through two-way operations, and the regulatory framework for interest rates on advances is proposed to be harmonised and standardised across regulated entities to improve transparency and consumer protection.

Payment deadlines are notified for waiver of interest and penalty under section 128A of the Telangana Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. Registered persons issued a covered notice, statement or order may pay the tax payable by 31 March 2025. Where tax is redetermined by the proper officer pursuant to appellate or court directions, payment may be made within six months from issuance of that order, with the relevant notice treated as issued under the non-fraud tax-demand provision.

The export-only inventory framework permits eligible e-commerce entities to export through a registered Exporter-on-Record, which procures goods from Indian Sellers-on-Record against confirmed overseas orders and assumes export and destination-country compliance responsibilities. Inventory must be segregated, digitally traceable and cannot be diverted to domestic sale. The framework requires timely seller payments, visibility of overseas sales and shipment information, proportional pass-through of export rebates and refunds, annual compliance certification and digital records.

The corrigenda correct the Employees' Deposit-Linked Insurance Scheme, 2026 through textual, grammatical, typographical and formatting amendments. They revise references concerning employer damages, exempted provident funds, continuing conditions for exemption, wages and eligible family members or nominees. The amendments also standardise Deposit-Linked terminology, correct headings and internal expressions, revise a formula notation, and rectify drafting and spelling errors.

Inherent power to quash criminal proceedings under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is exercisable sparingly where the FIR, taken at face value, discloses no offence or is frivolous, mala fide, vexatious, or an abuse of process. A pending civil suit concerning the same property does not itself justify quashing when allegations disclose an independent criminal offence. Alleged fraudulent execution of a power of attorney, including purported execution by a minor and a person outside India, warranted continuation of criminal proceedings; the High Court's refusal to interfere was upheld.

The Inventory-based Cross-border E-Commerce Facilitation Framework requires Exporters-on-Record to register through ANF 9A, maintain linked digital inventory records, ensure seller-declared goods match inventory, and secure destination-country compliance before export. Sellers must receive specified inventory visibility and timely seller-attributable export benefits. The framework regulates returned consignments, requires independent compliance certification and five-year record preservation, and provides a DGFT-based dispute-resolution process while preserving micro and small enterprise seller rights. Registration changes must be notified within 30 days, and non-compliance or false information may attract regulatory and legal action.

Gold smuggling enforcement operations under the Customs Act, 1962 involved alleged concealment and unlawful movement of foreign-origin gold. At an international airport, an alleged syndicate used an airline employee to transfer gold received from arriving passengers outside Customs and immigration controls, with gold disguised as silver-coloured bracelets. A separate railway operation concerned gold concealed in a specially made cloth waist belt and intended for delivery to a jeweller. The actions addressed concealment, evasion of Customs controls, and illicit transport of foreign-origin gold.

Corrigenda to the Employees' Pension Scheme, 2026 correct textual, terminological, numerical and cross-reference errors. They replace "security agreement" with "social security agreement", "pay" with "wages", and remove "by way of penalty" from the expression concerning employer damages. The corrections also revise the wage-ceiling terminology, aggregation wording, internal paragraph references, a reference to funds, and specified numerical entries.

The Employees' Provident Funds Scheme, 2026 is corrected through textual, terminological and cross-reference amendments. The corrigenda standardise references to Employees' Provident Funds, clarify provisions concerning excluded employees, members, international workers, exempted provident funds, nominees and contributions, and correct references to the Provident Fund Act, 1925, the Code on Wages, 2019 and Rule 65. They also revise investment-loss terminology, account nomenclature, numbering, dates, campaign references and security classifications in Form-II.

The Bankers' Books Evidence Bill, 2026, modernises the evidentiary treatment of banking records by extending "bankers' books" to physical, electronic, digital, virtual and cloud-based records. It recognises electronic bank records as admissible evidence, allows production in physical or electronic form, and provides for standardised certificates authenticated by manual, digital or electronic signatures. The Bill also defines "special cause" for compelling bank officers to produce records or testify where the bank is not a party, and permits extension to specified financial-sector entities subject to conditions.

Section 54 capital gains exemption may remain available in full where the assessee invests the entire sale proceeds in a replacement residential property jointly registered with a spouse and son. The provision is described as beneficial and does not require exclusive registration in the assessee's name. Where the investment is sourced from the assessee's sale proceeds, inclusion of family members who are legal heirs in the title does not defeat the exemption. A purposive and liberal interpretation, recognising constructive ownership, supports full exemption rather than restricting it because of the son's joint ownership.

Reassessment based solely on investigation-wing information concerning bank deposits, debits and credits requires the Assessing Officer's independent application of mind. Recorded reasons must disclose a reason to believe, founded on relevant material, that income escaped assessment; the material need not conclusively establish escapement at the notice stage. Mere reproduction of information about account transactions, without independent belief that deposits represent undisclosed income, does not satisfy this requirement. The reassessment was therefore invalid and quashed.