K D Engineers Vs Deputy/Assistant Commissioner (Gujarat High Court)
The Gujarat High Court considered a writ petition challenging an order passed under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 on the ground of violation of statutory provisions and principles of natural justice. The petitioner argued that the impugned order dated 20.08.2025 was passed in breach of Section 75(4) of the CGST Act, as requests for a personal hearing made on 21.07.2025 and 14.08.2025 were ignored. It was also contended that an additional reply filed on 14.08.2025, raising further grounds, was not considered by the adjudicating authority.
The respondent submitted that the additional reply dated 14.08.2025 was inadvertently overlooked as the portal was not rechecked, and the physical copy reached the authority only on the date of passing the order. It was argued that the authority had considered submissions made during the earlier personal hearing on 11.07.2025 and acted under a bona fide belief that no further submissions would be filed.
Upon examining the record, the Court found that only one personal hearing had been granted on 11.07.2025. Subsequent requests for a hearing and additional submissions made by the petitioner were not considered before passing the order. The Court noted that the additional reply explicitly stated that it had not been taken into account. This amounted to a violation of principles of natural justice and non-compliance with Section 75(4) of the CGST Act, which requires an opportunity of hearing before passing an adverse order.
