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India FTAs & ISDS

Karuturi contemplates legal recourse for loss in Ethiopia
11-Oct-2017 The Reporter
Karuturi could sue the government of Ethiopia at international tribunals on the basis of violations of the Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement India and Ethiopia have signed on.
Cairn Energy reveals when final arbitration hearing over India tax dispute will be heard
21-Sep-2017 Insider
The Edinburgh-based oil and gas explorer says both it and the Government of India have agreed a timetable for finalising document production, submissions and hearings.
Vodafone versus India: A BIT of confusion
12-Sep-2017 The Wire
By restraining a foreign investor from pursuing a claim under a bilateral investment treaty (BIT), the Delhi high court is coming in way of India’s accountability being tested under international law.
Cairn Energy adds $249 mn to compensation claim in retrospective tax dispute
12-Sep-2017 Energy Infra Post
UK-based Cairn Energy Plc has increased its compensation claim by $249 million in the retrospective dispute case after the income tax department adjusted tax refund due to the oil explorer towards settlement of its tax liabilities.
Would Vodafone comply with Delhi high court order?
4-Sep-2017 Live Mint
The Delhi high court has passed an ex-parte order restraining Vodafone Group Plc. from proceeding with arbitration under the India-UK Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement (India-UK BIPA). However, it remains to be seen whether Vodafone would comply with this order of the court.
A BIT of critique
24-Aug-2017 The Hindu
A committee in India, led by Justice B.N. Srikrishna, has lost an opportunity to push for the recalibration of the country’s BIT regime
India may deviate from model BIT to meet Canada’s demands
4-Aug-2017 The Hindu
As talks with Canada began before model text was approved by Cabinet, deviations may be allowed.
Tell us who gains from RCEP: People’s Forum demands as RCEP talks end
28-Jul-2017 People’s Forum against FTAs and RCEP
“Tell us at least now who gains from RCEP,” People’s Forum challenges the Indian government as the 19th round of RCEP negotiations comes to an end
Cabinet approves interpretative notes between India, Bangladesh
12-Jul-2017 Business Standard
The JIN includes the definition of investor and investment, exclusion of taxation measures, Fair and Equitable Treatment (FET), National Treatment (NT) and Most Favoured Nation (MFN) treatment, expropriation, essential security interests and settlement of disputes between an investor and a contracting party,
Minefields in investment relations
10-Jul-2017 Economic & Political Weekly
The Government of India and the Government of Andhra Pradesh are facing an arbitration suit due to the cancellation of bauxite mining approvals in Visakhapatnam. This is the latest in a series of legal actions by foreign investors in the country.
Foreign investment: big slogan and bigger worries
8-Jul-2017 NDTV India
What can India do at the level of trade and diplomacy to deal with RCEP
Investing in alternative dispute settlement
3-Jul-2017 Madhyam
Governments at the Centre and in the States must urgently invest in building their own capacity to handle the new generation of international investment arbitration.
US junks Bilateral Investment Treaty talks
29-Jun-2017 The Hindu
Talks deadlocked on investor dispute settlement.
Cairn tax dispute: I-T dept confiscates dividend, refund
19-Jun-2017 PTI
The Income Tax Department has ordered coercive action against Cairn Energy of UK, including taking away over Rs 2,000 crore dividend and tax refund, to recover part of the Rs 10,247 crore retrospective tax.
The art of the free trade agreement
8-Jun-2017 The Hindu
As India prepares to resume FTA talks with the EU, a recent landmark decision by the European Court of Justice on investor-state dispute settlement assumes importance.
‘Investment pact system needs review’
2-Jun-2017 The Hindu
‘IIA, which has a pro-investor bias, aims to protect only capital and not labour,’ said Saurabh Garg, the Joint Secretary in Indian Finance Ministry’s Department of Economic Affairs.
Vodafone Group serves second notice on India to formally start 2nd arbitration in tax case
17-May-2017 ET Telecom
Vodafone Group Plc has served its second notice on the Indian government to formally commence the​second ​arbitration in the high profile Rs 22,000 crore tax matter.
Withdrawal from investment treaties: An omen for waning investor protection in Asia-Pacific?
15-May-2017 Lexology
While India and Indonesia may have withdrawn from existing BITs, this does not necessarily leave foreign investors without any protection.
ISDS is unsuited to meet today’s global challenges
9-May-2017 Financial Times
The growing number of investor claims against sovereign host states has fuelled a backlash against bilateral investment treaties and free-trade agreements across the world.
RCEP will hurt local industry and allow workers’ exploitation, says civil society
9-May-2017 Down to Earth
RCEP is being negotiated in secrecy, but it is likely to favour big companies and threaten India’s agriculture, industry and e-commerce sectors