Balwinder Sood And Sons Vs State of Punjab And Others (Punjab And Haryana High Court)
The Punjab and Haryana High Court considered writ petitions challenging a GST demand order dated 07.08.2025 on the ground that the determination of tax liability violated principles of natural justice. A show cause notice dated 30.06.2025 permitted the petitioner to submit a reply explaining the discrepancies on or before 01.08.2025. However, the respondents fixed the personal hearing on 15.07.2025, before expiry of the reply period, and thereafter passed the impugned order.
The petitioner contended that fixing the hearing before the reply deadline denied an effective opportunity of hearing and relied upon Swiftline Transport Solutions (P) Ltd. vs. State of U.P. The respondents argued that the law did not require the hearing to be fixed only after submission of the reply. The High Court rejected this contention, observing that an opportunity of hearing is not an empty formality and that a meaningful oral hearing requires the assessee to first explain its stand through a reply to the show cause notice. The Court held that granting an oral hearing before receiving the reply violated the principles of natural justice. Accordingly, it allowed the writ petitions, quashed the order dated 07.08.2025, permitted the petitioner to file its reply within two weeks, and directed the respondents to fix a hearing thereafter and pass a reasoned order in accordance with law.
