New Delhi: India on Thursday (May 25) appealed to the World Trade Organisation’s appellate body against the WTO dispute settlement bodies decision ruling against India’s imposition of tariffs on mobile phones and electronic components, Business Standard. This appeal though, is being called an “appeal into the void” – because the appellate body has been dysfunctional ever since the US blocked the appointment of judges.
According to the newspaper, India said its decision to appeal involves “certain issues of law covered in the panel report and certain legal interpretations developed by the panel in the dispute”.
“This notice of appeal provides an indicative list of the paragraphs of the panel report containing the alleged errors of law and legal interpretation by the panel in its report, without prejudice to India’s ability to rely on other paragraphs of the panel report in its appeal,” India said in its notice.
On April 17, the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body had said that India’s tariffs on information and communication technology (ICT) violated the country’s zero-tariff commitment under the Information Technology Agreement enforced by the multilateral trade body.
Last month, the European Union had said that it may adopt retaliatory tariffs if India doesn’t abide by the WTO dispute settlement body’s ruling.
“In the event there is an appeal to the non-functioning WTO Appellate Body (i.e. an ‘appeal into the void’), the EU has in place legislation (the Enforcement Regulation) that allows it to enforce its rights by imposing customs duties or other restrictions in response to an appeal into the void, should the EU decide to do so,” an EU spokesperson had told the Business Standard.
