Corporate and Professional Updates on 15th July 2019

Corporate and Professional Updates on 15th July 2019

• Direct Tax Updates:

• Income Tax Return (ITR) filing compulsory for persons who deposit over Rs 1 crore in a current account in a year, spend over Rs 2 lakh on foreign travel or have an annual electricity bill of more than Rs 1 lakh.
• Income tax department has begun scrutiny of the data of traders registered with GST network as also with municipal corporations in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The department has also written to municipal corporations to introduce a column for PAN in the application form for getting a shop and establishment licences.
• Pre-filled Income Tax Return (ITR) Forms are of great help for the assessees as they need not enter all the information in each and every place of the form. Pre-filled Income Tax Return (ITR) Forms have made e-filing of Income Tax Return 2019-20 easier than before, as assessees need not enter all the information.
• Income Tax Assessing Officer couldn’t pass assessment order without considering claim raised by assessee in ITR: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA. Deepak Dhanaraj v. ITO Bengaluru*

Indirect tax updates:

• CBIC has issued the GST audit Manual 2019 after approval by the Board. The purpose of this Audit Manual is to outline the principles and policies of audits conducted under the CGST ACT, 2017 and the Rules made there under.
• Total number of entities filing GST returns has seen steady declined in the last four months for which data is available. Between February and May this year, the number of entities filing GST return has declined by almost 8 lakh, which is nearly 10% of the total GST return filed in the country.

• Finance Ministry unveiled a roadmap for the implementation of the new GST return mechanism. It has also put in place a transition mechanism. The new mechanism will be used on a trial basis from July to September. For the large taxpayers (those whose aggregate annual turnover in the previous fiscal was more than 5 crore, Form GST ANX will replace GSTR 1 from October.
• CBIC has issued a Clarifications on filing of Annual Return (FORM GSTR-9) based on the queries with respect to filing of this Annual return. It is clarified that the last date for filing of Annual return in FORM GSTR-9 will remain 30th June 2019.
• Many Indian exporters approached the Delhi High Court last week against the government for not extending the benefits of EPCG  scheme to goods and services tax (GST) regime.

SEBI Updates:

• The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) on Wednesday put the ball in markets regulator Sebi’s court to decide whether certain derivative trades carried out by Allied Financial were fraudulent and whether those could be annulled. Sebi has to decide on the two aspects by July 17. If the trades are annulled, then it would impact counter-parties involved in the concerned transactions for no fault of theirs. Additionally, if the Sebi order favours annulment of trades, then any party can annul contracts in the future, thus putting the system at risk. Trades have an underlying guarantee that they would be settled by the stock exchange in case of a payment default by a broker/clearing agent.
• The tricky matter regarding the settlement of Nifty options contracts between clearing member IL&FS Securities Services, broker-cum-trader Allied Financial Services, and several other market participants, has landed before the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). On Wednesday, the Securities Appellant Tribunal (SAT) remanded the matter to Sebi, directing the capital markets regulator to hear out all parties involved and pass a final order by July 17. According to the SAT’s directives, all parties involved have to submit their representation to Sebi by July 8. They can all then appear before the regulator for personal hearings between July 10 and July 16, before Sebi decides on how the calls will be settled. More importantly, the tribunal has stated that settlement of the derivatives trades will continue to remain in abeyance till July 22.

RBI Updates:

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has constituted a working group to review the regulatory guidelines and supervisory framework applicable for core investment companies (CIC), as the extant framework is not adequate to handle the complex corporate governance structures that the companies have now become. CICs are holding companies of non-banking financial companies (NBFCs).
• The working group will be headed by Tapan Ray, non-executive chairman of Central Bank of India and former secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
• The terms of reference of the working group would be to examine the current regulatory framework for CICs in terms of adequacy, efficacy and effectiveness of every component thereof and suggest changes therein, to assess the appropriateness of and suggest changes to the current approach of the RBI towards registration of CICs, to suggest measures to strengthen corporate governance and disclosure requirements for CICs. And to suggest appropriate measures to enhance the RBI’s off-sight surveillance and on-site supervision over CICs.

Other updates:

• Gross tax to GDP ratio dips to 10.9% in FY’19: SurveyGovt mulling ban on two and three-wheelers: Gadkari
• Banks see whopping 73% spike in frauds in FY19
• SFIO probe ordered against Jet Airways, its group cos
• Govt considering centralised internet monitoring
• HDFC wants NCLT to keep Jet’s HQ out of IBC process
• Brickwork Ratings cuts outlook on Edelweiss’ NCDs to negative
• ‘Plenty of blame to go around’: Urjit Patel admits RBI failed on bad loans
• 8% annual growth needed for GDP to touch $5 trn by FY25: Economic Survey
• US adds India along with China, EU to steel tariff dispute at WTO
• Centre cuts reliance on market borrowings to finance fiscal deficit
• EU objects to Hindalco’s plan to buy aluminum producer Aleris Corp
• Indo-US trade talks set to resume
• As India begins to grey, workplace policies may have to change
• ArcelorMittal’s ₹42,000-crore bid for Essar Steel gets NCLAT nod
• ‘Anticipated pre-buying of commercial vehicles prior to BS-VI norms unlikely’
• RSB Transmissions setting up ₹180-cr propeller shaft unit in Sri City

Key Other updates:

• CCI orders probe on Maruti Suzuki’s discounting practices
• Yes Bank acquires 9.57% stake in Eveready by invoking pledged shares
• State-run banks should be freed of constraints, says Raghuram Rajan
• MCA orders fraud probe against Jet Airways
• US drags India to WTO over duty hike on 28 American goods
• Economic Survey 2019: Finance Ministry makes progress in strategic sale of 28 CPSEs
• Economic Survey 2019: Steel production to hit 128.6 MT by 2021
• Budget Economic Survey 2019: Indian economy grows to $2.75 trillion despite slowing global economy

• Exports fall for first time in nine months amid trade tensions
• Shriram Transport looking to raise up to₹10,000 crore through NCDs
• Sun Pharma Surges 3.6% After Morgan Stanley Double Upgrade
• IRDAI may Relax Rules for Pension Plans & Ulips, Make Surrenders Easy
• Aditya Birla Fashion acquires 51% stake in Finesse International for ₹60 crore
• Securitisation Market Records 50% Growth in Q1
• India’s steel exports fall 34% to 6.36 MT in 2018-19
• Govt may issue sovereign bonds in phases, first lot to be of $3-4 billion
• Manipal Hospitals set to buy Medanta for ₹6,000 crore
• MFs differ with banks over DHFL resolution, may opt for the DRT route
• Customers forgotten in rush for electric vehicles, says TVS Motor chairman
• Exports contract 9.71% in June; trade deficit narrows to $15.28 b
• Sun Pharma launches capsules for lipid disorder treatment in US
• NCLAT order on Essar Steel has rewritten IBC rules: Lenders
• Ashok Leyland temporarily shuts Pantnagar plant
• IndiGo secures credit facility worth ₹2,577 crore amidst promoters dispute
• NIIF may invest $100 million in Multiples PE’s third fund
• Ambuja looks to expand cement capacities with buys in RMCs, aggregates
• BHEL, CONCOR tie up for rail-based logistics terminal at Haridwar
• Reckitt Benckiser and Apollo Hospitals tie up to launch ‘Arogya Rakshak’
• ‘Amazon Prime Video, ZEE5 in talks for a platform deal’
• Govt diverting around Rs 17,000 crore from petrol and diesel cess kitty
• Investors flee debt funds as credit quality slumps to lowest in 16 months
• USFDA completes Chennai facility audit with zero observations: Natco Pharma
• Sales improve 16% in the first quarter: Tata Steel
• NTPC raises ₹4,300 cr through bonds
• Sensex Rises 160 Points on Infy Surge, Macro Data
• Hero Electric eyes South India for new plant
• Real estate developers at risk as stress in credit market dries up funding
• Cotton Greaves increases stake in electric two-wheeler maker Ampere

Key Due Dates:

• 07-07-2019 – Deposit of TDS/TCS for the month of June 2019.
• 10-07-2019 – Issue of TDS Certificate for salary for the financial year 2018-19.
• 11-07-2019 – GSTR-1 for the month of June 2019 for taxpayers with Annual Aggregate turnover more than 1.50 Crore.
• 13-07-2019 – GSTR-6 for Input Service Distributor.
• 14-07-2019 – Issue of TDS Certificate for tax deducted under section 194-IA/194-IB in m/o           May’19.
• 15-07- 2019 – Quarterly statement of TCS for the quarter ending 30 June, 2019.
• 20-07-2019 – GSTR-3B for the m/o June 2019.
• 25-07-2019-  EPF return filing for the month of June 2019.
• 30 -07-2019 -Quarterly TCS certificate in respect of tax collected by any person for the quarter ending June 30, 2019.
• 31-07-19 – GSTR-1 for June Quarter applicable for taxpayers with Annual Aggregate turnover upto Rs. 1.50/- Crore.
• 31-07- 2019 – Quarterly statement of TDS for the quarter ending 30 June, 2019.