Supreme Court transfers to itself 27 writ petitions pending in 11 High Courts challenging the imposition of 28% GST on online gaming companies

Today (April 05, 2024), the Supreme Court (SC) transferred to itself 27 writ petitions pending in 11 High Courts challenging the imposition of 28% GST (Goods and Services Tax) on online gaming companies. The bench also tagged all these pending petitions with a petition pending in the SC filed by GamesKraft. The matter was heard today by a three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala, and Justice Manoj Misra. The SC bench posted the matter for hearing in the last week of April 2024. Online gaming companies such as Dream 11, Head Digital Works, and Games 24X7 have also filed petitions before the SC against the imposition of 28% GST on online gaming companies. Earlier on December 15, 2023, the SC refused to pass an interim order against GST demand notices to e-gaming companies and posted the matter for hearing on January 08, 2024. While hearing the matter on January 08, 2024, the top court sought response from the Centre Government on a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the imposition of 28% GST on online gaming companies. Today, the SC bench transferred all the pending petitions in High Courts related to the matter to itself and posted them for hearing in the last week of April 2024.