Orissa HC Set Aside GST Demand for Initiation Against Wrong Person Due to Clerical Error:

Subrat Rout Vs Commissioner of (C.T. & G.S.T.) (Orissa High Court)

The Orissa High Court examined a writ petition challenging an adjudication order dated 27.07.2021 passed under Section 73 of the Odisha GST Act/CGST Act for the tax period December 2018. The petitioner contended that the GST authorities proceeded against him under a mistaken identity and erroneous factual assumption. According to the petitioner, his GST registration had already been cancelled at the time of adjudication, and he had not received any payment for the alleged works during the relevant period. He became aware of the adjudication and demand only upon receipt of a recovery notice dated 29.03.2025. The demand was based on payments purportedly made for works executed for a government division; however, the petitioner asserted that such payments were not received by him and did not relate to his business.

Upon representation, the concerned Superintending Engineer acknowledged a clerical error in furnishing TDS details, clarifying that payments were actually made to another individual with a different PAN and GSTIN, and not to the petitioner. The GST Department, through written instructions, admitted the factual error, confirming that payments were wrongly attributed due to inadvertent mention of the petitioner’s GSTIN during return filing. Bank account verification also established that the petitioner had not received the amounts in question.