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India, one of the world's fastest-growing economies and its most populous nation, has been a darling of foreign investors. But tax uncertainty has often been a sore point for investors
India
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Moneycontrol•19-01-2026, 09:31

SC Verdict on Tiger Global Tax Rattles Global Investors, Redefines India-Mauritius Treaty

  • •The Supreme Court ruled against Tiger Global, stating its $1.6 billion Flipkart stake sale to Walmart in 2018 is taxable, citing Mauritius units as "conduit" firms for tax avoidance.
  • •The verdict overturns years of aggressive tax planning, allowing India to scrutinize corporate deals and override treaty benefits claimed through sham structures.
  • •Foreign investors channeled $180 billion into India via Mauritius, leveraging a no-tax regime on share sales, which the 2017 treaty aimed to end with a "grandfathering clause" for pre-2017 investments.
  • •The SC clarified that India's anti-tax-evasion law (GAAR) can deny treaty benefits if a transaction lacks genuine commercial substance, effectively nullifying grandfathering protection.
  • •The ruling has made investors jittery, with lawyers receiving anxious calls, and raises concerns about increased scrutiny of past deals and India's tax environment.

Why It Matters: SC's Tiger Global tax ruling strengthens India's anti-tax evasion stance, unsettling global investors and redefining treaty benefits.

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