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Gujarat names Uday Kotak chairman of Gift city
Veteran banker replaces Hasmukh Adhia amid renewed push for offshore finance
GUJARAT: The Gujarat government has appointed veteran banker Uday Kotak as chairman of Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, commonly known as Gift City, replacing former bureaucrat Hasmukh Adhia.
The appointment comes as Gift City sharpens its push to attract global capital with liberalised tax and regulatory norms, positioning itself as a rival to financial centres such as Singapore and Dubai.
Earlier this month, the Centre doubled the tax holiday for entities setting up operations in Gift City to 20 years, a move aimed at accelerating offshore banking, fund management and capital market activity within the zone.
Uday Kotak brings more than four decades of experience in India’s financial sector to the role. He is the founder and former managing director and chief executive of Kotak Mahindra Bank, which he established in 1985 as a modest bill-discounting business. Over time, the firm evolved into a diversified financial services group, spanning banking, capital markets, asset management and insurance. In 2003, it made history by becoming the first non-banking financial company in India to convert into a commercial bank. Kotak currently serves as a non-executive director on the bank’s board.
Kotak’s career is widely seen as one of the most notable entrepreneurial success stories in India’s financial services industry. In the early 1990s, Kotak Finance expanded into auto loans, investment banking and stockbroking, riding the momentum of India’s economic liberalisation in 1991. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Kotak did not hail from a prominent business family nor did he have the backing of deep-pocketed institutional investors, making the firm’s early expansion particularly arduous.
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Jubilant FoodWorks faces Rs 47.5 crore GST demand, plans appeal
Tax authorities flag alleged misclassification of restaurant services
MUMBAI:Â Jubilant FoodWorks Limited has landed in a tax tussle after receiving a GST demand of Rs 47.5 crore from the office of the additional commissioner of CGST and central excise in Thane, Maharashtra.
The order, issued under the provisions of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, relates to an alleged incorrect classification of certain services under the category of restaurant services. According to the tax authorities, this classification resulted in a short payment of goods and services tax for the period between the financial years 2019-20 and 2021-22.
The demand includes Rs 47.5 crore in GST along with an equal amount as penalty, in addition to applicable interest. The order was received by the company on March 13, 2026.
In a regulatory filing to the BSE Limited and the National Stock Exchange of India Limited, the company said it disagrees with the order and believes its arguments were not adequately considered.
The company is preparing to challenge the decision and plans to file an appeal. It added that once the redressal process is complete, the demand is likely to be dropped.
Despite the sizeable figure attached to the notice, the company said it does not expect any material impact on its financials, operations or other activities.
The disclosure was signed by Suman Hegde, EVP and chief financial officer, who confirmed that the company received the order at 19:06 IST on March 13 and has already initiated steps to contest it.
The development places the quick service restaurant major in the middle of a tax debate that could hinge on how certain restaurant-linked services are classified under GST rules. For now, the company appears ready to take the matter from the tax office to the appeals desk.
