The Supreme Court has dismissed the Revenue’s review petitions challenging its earlier refusal to interfere with the Delhi High Court’s ruling permitting Bharti Airtel and other telecom companies to avail Input Tax Credit (ITC) on telecom towers under the GST regime.

A Bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Prasanna B. Varale found no error apparent on the face of the record warranting reconsideration of the Court’s earlier order. Consequently, the review petitions filed by the Commissioner, CGST Appeal-I, Delhi, were dismissed. The Court also condoned the delay in filing the review petitions and disposed of the pending applications.

Background of the Dispute

The dispute concerns the eligibility of ITC on telecom towers installed on land or rooftops. The Revenue contended that such towers constitute immovable property and, therefore, ITC is restricted under Section 17(5) of the CGST Act, 2017. According to the Revenue, the towers could not be treated as “plant and machinery” for the purpose of claiming credit.

Bharti Airtel and other telecom companies, on the other hand, maintained that telecom towers constitute plant and machinery used in the course of their business and consequently fall within the statutory exception to the restriction under Section 17(5). They also relied upon the legislative intent underlying the pre-GST and GST regimes and the Supreme Court’s earlier decision concerning Bharti Airtel under the service tax regime.

Delhi High Court Ruling and Supreme Court’s Earlier Decision

The Delhi High Court had ruled in favour of the telecom companies, holding that telecom towers fall within the ambit of “plant and machinery” and, therefore, ITC could not be denied merely on the ground that the towers were affixed to land or rooftops.

The Revenue challenged the decision before the Supreme Court through Special Leave Petitions (Civil) Nos. 22060-22062 of 2025. On 8 August 2025, the Supreme Court declined to interfere with the Delhi High Court’s judgment and dismissed the SLPs at the admission stage.

The Revenue thereafter approached the Supreme Court by way of review petitions, seeking reconsideration of the August 2025 order.

Supreme Court Rejects Review – No Error Apparent

While considering the review petitions, the Bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Prasanna B. Varale held that, upon careful consideration of the grounds raised by the Revenue, no error apparent on the face of the record was found warranting review of the earlier order.

The Court accordingly observed that there was no merit in the review petitions and dismissed them. The dismissal leaves undisturbed the earlier Supreme Court order refusing to interfere with the Delhi High Court’s ruling in favour of the telecom companies.

Significance for GST ITC on Telecom Infrastructure

The decision provides significant relief to Bharti Airtel, Indus Towers and other telecom players, as it reinforces the position that telecom towers used for carrying on telecom operations can qualify as “plant and machinery” for the purposes of GST ITC.

The dispute essentially turned on the interpretation of the restriction contained in Section 17(5), particularly whether telecom towers should be treated as immovable property or as plant and machinery. The Revenue’s attempt to deny credit by characterising the towers as immovable property has, at this stage, failed before both the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court.

The ruling is therefore likely to have wider ramifications for the telecom and infrastructure sector, particularly in cases involving substantial GST credits relating to telecom towers and allied infrastructure.

Copy of the judgment awaited