Several companies caught in the crosshairs of the GST authorities got a sense of relief last week after the Punjab & Haryana High Court stayed operation of a central board of indirect taxes & customs (CBIC) circular clarifying on the validity of the levy. CBIC's October 27, 2003, circular had clarified that a corporate guarantee, provided by one company to banks or financial institutions to help an associate company secure a loan, even without a consideration, should be considered supply of service between related parties under the Schedule I of the CGST Act, 2017.9
