Shri Swastik Traders Vs State of Chhattisgarh (Chhattisgarh High Court)
The petitioner challenged two orders issued by the State Tax authorities: an order dated 24.07.2024 by the Assistant Commissioner raising a GST demand of ₹3,38,75,200, and an appellate order dated 18.06.2025 by the Joint Commissioner rejecting the petitioner’s appeal. The petitioner sought quashing of both orders through a writ petition.
The petitioner had filed all statutory GST returns, including GSTR-1, GSTR-3B, GSTR-9, and GSTR-9C. After scrutiny, the authorities issued a notice in Form ASMT-10 on 17.05.2024, which was not replied to. A subsequent notice under Section 73(8) of the Chhattisgarh GST Act read with Rule 142(1)(a) was issued in Form DRC-01 concerning short payment of tax, non-consideration of credit notes, excess ITC claims under IGST, CGST and SGST, and unpaid RCM liability. The total proposed demand comprised ₹1,83,01,131 in tax, ₹1,37,42,353 in interest, ₹18,31,516 in penalty, and ₹200 in late fees. The petitioner did not respond due to serious illness, resulting in an ex-parte order confirming the demand.
The petitioner appealed, but the appellate authority rejected the appeal as barred by limitation. The petitioner argued that an earlier order dated 16.03.2023 issued by the Deputy Commissioner had dropped a previous notice after finding no discrepancies in returns. The petitioner contended that subsequent notices issued by lower-ranking officers contradicted this earlier order and were therefore invalid.
