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Cybercrime is becoming a major threat to Indian companies, prompting a surge in demand for legal expertise in cybersecurity. Law firms are experiencing increased advisory work due to AI-enabled scams and new privacy laws. Companies are boosting cybersecurity budgets and reviewing data practices to comply with upcoming regulations and protect against sophisticated fraud tactics. “We have seen a significant increase, perhaps 20-30% more than previous years, in advisory work relating to criminal investigations being conducted by law enforcement agencies into various cybercrimes against or involving technology and banking companies,” said Dheeraj Nair, partner at JSA Advocates & Solicitors. Nair said JSA was advising clients on frozen bank accounts in cyberfraud cases, customer-data theft, police requests for overseas-held data, regulatory reporting and data breach disputes. Read more

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Fund houses in GIFT City faced tax benefit denials due to technical glitches, which are now being addressed by tax authorities. Experts stress the importance of clear tax administration to sustain competitiveness. Compliance costs and registration requirements pose challenges, with calls for simpler taxation akin to leading jurisdictions. “GIFT City’s tax benefits are real, but the conditions to be fulfilled for claiming them are critical. A fund has to meet tests on its investor base, share of resident investors, and its corpus. Master funds feel this the most. When Section 8OLA deductions are not allowed over technical (glitch), a manager cannot be sure if the tax holiday will actually be available. Goods and services tax (GST) adds to the problem,” said Rajul Bohra, partner, JSA. Read more

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The DNPA has petitioned the Supreme Court against the DPDP Act, citing its potential to obstruct journalism by lacking exemptions for investigative reporting. The Act’s consent and data-erasure rules could hinder news operations. The Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing for November 17, while concerns persist about balancing data privacy with press freedom and public accountability. According to Probir Roy Chowdhury, Partner at JSA Advocates & Solicitors, the absence of a journalism-specific exemption creates uncertainty because reporting often involves processing personal data without the subject’s consent. He noted that the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019, had proposed an exemption for journalistic purposes subject to a code of ethics, but this was not retained in the 2022 draft or the final Act. Any exemption should be narrowly framed around public-interest reporting, with safeguards such as a recognised code of ethics and independent oversight. Obligations that could defeat journalism, including advance notice, consent or pre-publication access, could be treated differently without removing data-security responsibilities, Chowdhury argued. He also cautioned that data-access or erasure requests and regulatory complaints could be used to identify newsroom information or delay publication. Read more

SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said the regulator has made progress in reducing onboarding timelines for foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) but acknowledged that India’s compliance requirements remain stricter than those in other markets. SEBI will issue a consultation paper to review these norms, incorporating feedback from foreign investors to identify procedural hurdles. Recent measures include easing documentation requirements for FPIs investing exclusively in government securities and expanding access to commodity derivatives, aiming to improve ease of doing business while maintaining regulatory safeguards.  Commenting on the development, Pulkit Sukhramani, Partner, JSA Advocates & Solicitors, said, “By acknowledging the challenges in FPI onboarding and taking active steps to fix them, SEBI is sending a positive message to global investors that the Indian regulator is listening. A streamlined, digital onboarding process will make it easier to enter the market and should cut timelines significantly.” Read more

As part of Energetica India Magazine’s #IndiasRE100Champions campaign, the magazine featured Poonam Sengupta, Partner, JSA Advocates & Solicitors. Sharing her vision and plans for India’s energy transition, Poonam Sengupta said “India’s energy transition is entering a decisive phase, anchored in its target of over 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030 and a sharpened focus on energy security, sustainability and infrastructure growth. The #transition now spans well beyond solar and wind to hydropower, bioenergy, battery energy storage systems (BESS), nuclear power, and the modernisation of power and transmission networks. As the sector matures from foundational tariff disputes to complex questions of grid compliance, Change in Law standards, compensation models and transmission risk allocation, legal clarity will be as critical as capacity addition. At JSA, we have been actively contributing to shaping this legal and regulatory landscape, representing leading developers and industry bodies before regulatory commissions, APTEL, High Courts and the Supreme Court in matters that have set sector-wide precedent – from securing the first recognition of Carrying Cost as part of Change in Law relief under RE PPAs and relief for Safeguard Duty and bird diverters, to upholding tariff entitlements, overturning a retrospective wind tariff order, and protecting #REC market integrity and floor prices. Together, these outcomes have strengthened contractual sanctity, risk allocation and investor confidence. We remain committed to helping stakeholders navigate the next wave of regulatory change and build commercially viable projects across the energy value chain.” Read more

Recent cybersecurity incidents at major Indian banks have exposed significant vulnerabilities, risking customer data and trust. Despite regulatory efforts, challenges persist in effectively addressing evolving threats. The interconnected nature of technology providers adds complexity, necessitating continuous monitoring and rapid response to enhance cyber resilience and protect customer information. Sajai Singh, partner at JSA Advocates and Solicitors, said the RBI framework provides stronger safeguards for operational resilience, while the DPDP framework focuses on personal data protection and breach related obligations. “The main gap is regulatory fragmentation because RBI, DPDP, IT Act, CERT. In style directions, contractual obligations, and customer-protection rules impose overlapping but differently triggered duties,’ Singh said. Once there levant DPDP provisions become operational, failure to implement reasonable security safeguards can attract penalties of up to 250 crore, while failures relating to breach notifications can attract penalties of up to 200 crore. Singh also flagged concentration risks arising from banks’ dependence on a handful of cloud, payment and technology providers. A cyber incident at one major provider could have repercussions across several institutions. Read more

Speaking at a media roundtable on Thursday, Raj Ramachandran, Partner, JSA Advocates & Solicitors, said GCCs were increasingly taking ownership of proprietary technology, intellectual property, data models and strategic business functions, fundamentally changing their workforce requirements. He highlighted a shift towards leaner organisational structures, with companies increasingly prioritising specialised skills over large-scale hiring. Rashi Saraf, Partner, JSA Advocates & Solicitors, highlighted the broader transformation of India’s GCC ecosystem, with multinational companies increasingly shifting research, product development and intellectual property functions to their Indian operations. “More IP sitting in India rather than at the parent level. More decision-making is targeted with GCCs now than it traditionally has been,” Saraf said. Meanwhile, Tony Verghese, Partner, JSA Advocates & Solicitors, highlighted the need for Indian GCCs to reconcile domestic compliance requirements with policies established by their overseas parent companies. “It’s important to bear in mind the fact that when you’re referring to GCCs in India, it’s an Indian company where Indian laws will apply,” Verghese said. Read more

Additional Stories:

• Transfer Pricing Reforms Could Ease Tax Uncertainty For India’s GCCs, Says JSA
• India’s GCCs Face Rising Cybersecurity, Data Compliance Pressures Amid Regulatory Overhaul

• Ten States Race To Attract GCC Investments As India Awaits National Policy Framework

The article explains that employers must establish misconduct through fair investigations and assess whether dismissal is proportionate to the offence. Courts consider factors such as the severity of misconduct, evidence, employee tenure, past performance and delays in disciplinary action. Employers should preserve contemporaneous evidence, document their reasoning and explain why lesser penalties are inadequate. Timely investigations and clear records are essential to ensuring dismissal decisions are legally defensible and withstand challenges. “This documentation is often what makes the difference between a defensible dismissal and one that is set aside on challenge,” says Preetha Soman, JSA partner. Read more

India’s healthcare sector is attracting significant private equity investment, with global firms such as Blackstone, KKR and Carlyle funding hospital expansion into underserved tier-two and tier-three cities. More than $14.5 billion entered the sector between 2020 and March 2025. Hospital chains plan to add over 34,000 beds in four years, addressing infrastructure gaps and rising demand. However, experts warn that high medical inflation, substantial out-of-pocket expenses and limited regulation could deepen healthcare inequalities and increase financial burdens on vulnerable households. “We see the healthcare space outperforming for its investors and it will continue to do so,” said Minhaz Lokhandwala, a Mumbai-based partner at law firm JSA who has worked on medical industry deals. “I don’t see that stopping at all because there’s so much penetration still left.” Read more

The GST Council has approved reforms to simplify input tax credit (ITC) and accelerate refunds for businesses. The proposals include automated, risk-based processing, with 90% of eligible refunds released automatically, and shorter acknowledgement timelines. The Council also expanded ITC eligibility for specified expenses, including employee health and life insurance, telecom towers and pipelines outside factories. However, protection for genuine buyers whose suppliers fail to deposit GST has been referred to a committee for further examination.  Shareen Gupta, Partner at JSA Advocates and Solicitors, highlighted the importance of the proposed ITC and refund changes, while noting that unresolved issues also remain in the credit framework. Read more

The GST Council has proposed major administrative reforms to simplify compliance and improve ease of doing business. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman highlighted faceless assessments, automated refunds, simplified registrations and wider input tax credit (ITC) eligibility. The Council recommended scrapping GST officers’ arrest powers and raising the prosecution threshold from ₹1 crore to ₹5 crore. It also proposed reducing penalties, easing compliance for small e-commerce sellers and accelerating refunds. The reforms are expected to take effect from April 2027. According to Shareen Gupta, Partner, JSA Advocates and Solicitors, the proposal to introduce a centralised tax administration for assesses under central jurisdiction “should bring greater uniformity to how GST is implemented, which will particularly benefit large taxpayers.” Read more

FSSAI has directed states and Union Territories to intensify food safety inspections ahead of Navratri and Diwali, citing increased demand for sweets, dairy products, ghee, snacks, edible oils and beverages. Authorities have been asked to conduct targeted inspections and sampling at vulnerable locations to prevent adulterated, counterfeit and unsafe food from reaching consumers. Food Safety on Wheels units will be deployed for on-the-spot testing, while inspection and sampling data must be recorded in real time on FSSAI’s digital platforms. Read more