FDI Policy for E-Commerce Entities
FDI POLICY FOR E-COMMERCE ENTITIES The consolidated FDI Policy Circular 2017 (“Policy”) lays down the regulation on foreign direct investment (“FDI”) in e-commerce, under the Press Note 2 (2018 series) (“Press Note”) which was released on December 26, 2018. Previously, under the Policy 100% FDI was permitted only in marketplace e-commerce entities (“Marketplace(s)”). If a […]
Dormant Company & Fast Track Exit
This note conveys information on Dormant Company and Fast Track Exit under Companies Act and related Rules. Dormant CompanyDefinition Any company which is not doing business for two financial years and is not intending to do any business in the near future for up to 5 years can make an application to place its status […]
Types of Entities for Foreign Enterprises in India
The entities that a foreign enterprise can set up in India can be either unincorporated or incorporated. 1. Incorporated Structures The incorporated structures are as follows: 1.1 Wholly Owned Subsidy (“WOS”) A wholly-owned subsidiary is a resident Indian company whose stock is entirely owned by its parent corporation. The Indian company can be a private limited company or a public limited […]
The Specific Relief Amendment Bill- What has specifically changed
The Specific Relief Amendment Bill, 2018 was passed in the parliament on July 24th, 2018. This bill amends the Specific Relief Act, 1963 (‘Act’) and has introduced the following changes to an old but important piece of legislation: 1. The Amendment Act makes “specific performance” of a contract as a mandate as against the earlier […]
Livelihood in the time of Corona
A tale of two workers Ajay, a UX designer working at an MNC in Bengaluru, got ready to go to office. He booked a cab and unlike most other days, was able to get a cab faster today and left for office. Ajay, being generally chatty, started a conversation with the cab driver, Mahesh. He […]
Supreme Court on Allowances and PF Contributions
The Supreme Court recently decided on whether special allowance is part of basic wages for the purposes of Provident Fund (“PF”) contributions. The Supreme Court clubbed different appeals by various employers, which clubbed the common question of law on whether special allowance and various other specified allowances (“Allowances”) paid by the employers are part of […]
Her & Co-Working Spaces
I visited a co-working space in Bengaluru recently. While some people were racing around the copier machine, some were chatting in the cafeteria. There were few others who were sitting in pods and were glued to their laptop screens. It looked like any other workplace (except they had better coffee). I saw an amalgam of […]
Draft Karnataka Maternity (Benefit) Amendment Rules, 2018
The draft Karnataka Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Rules, 2018 (“Rules”), issued by the Department of Labour, Government of Karnataka. The Rules have been published for comments, objections and suggestions, after which it will be notified and enforced. The following are the important features of the Rules: 1. Establishment of a creche: The Rules specify that the […]
Dealing with sexual harassment complaints: Time to check your internal committee
The recent ruling by the Delhi High Court in case of Ms. Ruchika Singh Chhabra v M/S Air France India and Anr., will require the companies to review the constitution of their Internal Complainants Committee (“ICC”). The court held if the appointment of the external member for the ICC is not in accordance with the Sexual Harassment of Women […]
What you need to know about the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018
The Justice BN Krishna Committee has recently submitted the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018 to the Indian Parliament and in all likelihood we will see a new Data Protection Law in India very soon (either based on the Bill as is or with modifications). With mounting concerns worldwide regarding the protection and need for legal […]