Sun Tamil Nadu Security Management Services Private Limited Vs Commissioner of GST And Central Excise (Madras High Court)
The Court directed acceptance of the taxpayer’s application for waiver of interest and penalty, emphasizing that the scheme’s purpose is to reduce litigation and should be interpreted beneficially.
Summary: The petitioner approached the Madras High Court seeking a writ of mandamus directing the GST authorities to accept its application dated 30.06.2025 filed under Section 128A of the GST Acts for waiver of interest and penalty. The issue arose from an adverse assessment order dated 31.10.2022 passed under Section 73(9) of the CGST and TNGST Acts, following a show cause notice issued on 04.01.2022.
Assessment Order Details
Under the assessment order, the authorities confirmed and appropriated several tax demands against the petitioner, including:
- Interest of ₹11,82,579 for delayed GST payment from July 2017 to March 2018;
- Tax demand of ₹1,89,89,748 for 2018–19, of which ₹1,30,46,271 was appropriated;
- Interest of ₹13,18,490 for delayed GST from April 2018 to May 2018; and
- Penalty of ₹18,98,975, being 10% of the tax demanded.
The petitioner appealed this order under Section 107(1), challenging the confirmed tax, related interest, and penalty.
Introduction of Section 128A and Relevant Notifications
On 08.10.2024, the Central and State Governments issued Notification No.21/2024 under Section 128A(1) of the CGST and TNGST Acts. Section 128A provides for waiver of interest and penalty in cases where tax for the period from July 2017 to March 2020 has been fully paid by the notified date. The notified cut-off date for payment under the notification was 31.03.2025.
