New Delhi, Oct. 18 -- The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that a foreign company cannot be said to have stopped doing business in India merely because it has no office or active contract in the country, holding that such a narrow view undermines India's global trade ambitions and ease of doing business goals. A bench of justices Manoj Misra and Joymalya Bagchi said that in an era of globalisation, the life blood of which is transnational trade and commerce, courts must adopt a pragmatic approach consistent with contemporary business realities. The court's observations came while setting aside a Uttarakhand High Court order that had disallowed business expenditure deductions claimed by Pride Foramer SA, a French oil drilling company, on the ground that it was not carrying on business in India during the relevant assessment years. The top court restored the orders of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, which had allowed deductions, and directed Assessing Officer to pass fresh assessment orders accordingly.htc...