Zee-SEBI Dispute, Bar Council-NALSAR Students’ Standoff, Collegium Recommendations, and More

“[A lawyer’s] instinct to examine the exercise of authority in any form or manner against the values of justice, fairness, and rule of law is not just a legacy of the freedom movement. It remains relevant to us even today, and reminds us of the foundational Constitutional rights that we have inherited, which enable us to protect the civil liberties of individuals.”

- CJI Surya Kant at SCBA’s Independence Day function address

A reprieve for Zee
The Securities Appellate Tribunal’s interim order in the Zee Entertainment-SEBI dispute offers a significant but narrow reprieve for the company. Earlier in the week, SEBI had barred Zee from accessing the securities market for two months, and Punit Goenka and Subhash Chandra for 12 months. After an appeal, SAT allowed the company to complete its ₹31.43-billion preferential warrant issue to a promoter-group entity.

The bar on the entities from accessing the equity market continues while the appeal is being heard. The SAT neither reversed the regulator’s findings, nor stayed the market-access restrictions; the appeals court simply carved out an exception for a time-sensitive fundraising exercise, conditional on both the company and Goenka depositing their full penalties within a week. While doing this, the SAT also questioned SEBI about its rationale behind blocking the transaction in the first place.

Key Rulings:

• Delhi High Court has ruled that lawyers discharging duties as insolvency professionals are liable to collect Goods and Services Tax and deposit it with the government under the forward charge mechanism

Courts:

• Supreme Court slaps costs of ₹1 million on Reliance Industries for obstructing a 20-year-old commercial suit over natural gas supply from proceedings beyond evidence stage for years
• Supreme Court quashes hate speech complaint against Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi over remarks relating to Savarkar
• Bombay High Court enquires from lenders and the ED if debts of fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya have been cleared using his assets
• Karnataka High Court quashes ED proceedings against Samman Capital
• Delhi High Court seeks reply from Caravan magazine in a defamation lawsuit filed by minister Nitin Gadkari’s son

Quasi Courts:

• Securities Appellate Tribunal stays SEBI order against Zee, allows it to proceed with ₹31.43 billion warrant issue

Other:

• The Bar Council of India issued a circular barring enrolment of NALSAR students over the controversy around the invitation to Chief Justice of India as the chief guest at the convocation

          -- The BCI, within hours, withdrew its decision to bar enrolment for NALSAR students 

          -- Several members of the BCI distanced themselves from the notice; BCI faced backlash and criticism from students and the legal fraternity while a top court bench headed by CJI himself slammed the circular

          -- BCI Chairman issued an apology to law students following criticism from students from various law institutes

• The President gives her assent to the Tribunals Reforms Act of 2026 which aims to overhaul the tribunals system making it more independent and transparent
• The law to increase strength of Supreme Court judges receives President’s assent

The Big Listings:

• Aug 24: Andhra Pradesh High Court to hear PIL against Google’s proposed data centre in Visakhapatnam
• Sep 9: Bombay High Court to hear Vijay Mallya’s plea against an order of special criminal court
• Sep 4: 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

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

Legal Moves:

• Supreme Court Collegium recommends appointment as chief justice of:

      -- Justice RV Ghuge at Calcutta High Court

      -- Justice MC Tripathi at Bombay High Court

      -- Justice V Kameswar Rao at Patna High Court

      -- Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra at Punjab & Haryana High Court

• Rohan Jain, Kshitij Arora leave Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas to join Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas