
The Bombay High Court has dismissed Hindustan Unilever Ltd’s (HUL) petition challenging a ₹963 crore tax demand raised by the Income Tax Department. The court has instructed HUL to appeal the decision before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal within 15 days, along with a stay application to delay the payment.
The tax demand was imposed for HUL’s failure to comply with Section 195 of the Income Tax Act, which requires tax to be deducted at source for certain transactions. This issue arose from HUL’s acquisition of the Horlicks trademark from GlaxoSmithKline in 2020.
The court also directed the tax authorities not to enforce the payment until the tribunal makes a decision on HUL’s stay request. HUL shares were down 0.80%, trading at ₹3,004.25 on the NSE as of 9:32 AM.