Sanat Kumar Hazra & Anr. Vs Assistant Commissioner (Calcutta High Court)
The Calcutta High Court considered a writ petition challenging a show cause notice dated 29 April 2024 and an adjudication order dated 30 December 2024 passed under Section 74 of the West Bengal Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 for the tax period from July 2017 to December 2017.
The petitioners, partners of M/s Reliance Engineering Works, submitted that their firm was a registered taxpayer. They explained that petitioner no. 1 had been suffering from severe diabetes since 2021 and that his daughter, who had been suffering from bronchial asthma since 2011, was admitted to hospital on 10 August 2023 and passed away on 12 August 2023 at the age of 25. According to the petitioners, these circumstances caused petitioner no. 1, the key managerial person, to lose focus on the business.
The petitioners stated that a show cause notice under Section 74 was issued in Form DRC-01 during this period. Owing to the personal circumstances faced by petitioner no. 1, they could not file a reply to the notice, resulting in an ex parte adjudication order. They contended that they should be afforded an opportunity to contest the proceedings.
