In a significant development, the Supreme Court has consolidated and taken control of multiple petitions from various High Courts that challenge the imposition of a 28% Goods and Services Tax ( GST ) on online gaming firms.
The decision was made by a bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra, which directed the transfer of 27 writ petitions from eleven different High Courts to itself, linking them with the ongoing petition filed by GamesKraft in the Supreme Court.
This move came in response to a transfer petition filed by the Union of India, and the matter is scheduled for further proceedings in the last week of April 2024.
Several prominent online gaming entities, including Dream 11, Games 24×7, and Head Digital Works, have also filed writ petitions before the Supreme Court, challenging the GST imposition.
In the specific case involving GamesKraft, the Supreme Court had previously stayed a judgment by the Karnataka High Court that nullified a GST Demand Notice of Rs 21,000 crore issued to the gaming company.
During the hearing held in January 2024, Senior Advocate Harish Salve, representing the online gaming companies, contended that there is no basis for imposing GST on the entire face value of bets or amounts paid into the totalisator, as there is no tangible ‘actionable claim’ involved.
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