LANDMARK CASE

Vodafone International Holdings v. Union of India

(2012) 6 SCC 613 · Supreme Court of India · Tax law

At a glance

Citation: (2012) 6 SCC 613
Court: Supreme Court of India
Area of law: Tax law
In one line: No. The transaction was outside India's tax jurisdiction.

1 Facts

Vodafone bought shares of a foreign company that indirectly held Indian assets. The tax department claimed capital gains tax.

2 Issue

Is an offshore share transfer taxable in India?

3 What the court decided

No. The transaction was outside India's tax jurisdiction.

4 Why it matters

Parliament amended the law retrospectively in 2012, later reversed in 2021.

5 Think about it

What lessons does this case teach about retrospective taxation?

6 Analyse it yourself

Read the full judgment from an official source or a law database, then brief it in seven steps: facts, issues, arguments, decision, ratio, obiter and significance. Always check the citation before you rely on it.

7 More cases on Tax law

McDowell and Co. v. Commercial Tax Officer (1985) 3 SCC 230
Union of India v. Azadi Bachao Andolan (2004) 10 SCC 1

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A short teaching summary for students. Educational content only, not legal advice.