Case Law Details
Best Sellers (Cochin) Private Limited Vs Assistant State Tax Officer (Kerala High Court)
The petitioner has approached this Court aggrieved by Ext.P7 detention notice issued to him in Form GST MOV-7. In the Writ Petition, it is the case of the petitioner that the transportation was of a consignment of watches that had been supplied to him by the seller in Delhi at a discounted rate of Rs.8.99. It is seen that the transportation of the goods was accompanied by Ext.P4 tax invoice, where the supplier in Delhi had shown the actual price of the consignment of watches, which was Rs.4,49,550/- and had given a discount of almost the entire amount save to the extent of Rs.8.99, and had paid IGST at the rate of 18% on the actual value of the watches. The consignment was detained by the respondent, on the ground that, although the consignment was covered by a valid invoice, it was not accompanied by a valid e-way bill. The learned counsel for the petitioner would point that inasmuch as the discounted value of the goods was less than Rs.50,000/-, there was no requirement for the consignment to be accompanied by an e-way bill.
2. I have heard the learned counsel for the petitioner as also the learned Government Pleader for the respondent.
3. On a consideration of the facts and circumstances of the case and the submissions made across the Bar, I find force in the contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner that inasmuch as the effective value of the goods that was transported was only Rs.8.99 as evident from Ext.P4 invoice, and the provisions of the Act and Rules mandate that an e-way bill is required only for consignments whose value exceeds Rs.50,000/-, the detention at the instance of the respondent cannot be said to be justified. Under such circumstances, I allow this Writ Petition by quashing Ext.P7 order and directing the respondent to forthwith release the goods and the vehicle to the petitioner on the petitioner producing a copy of this judgment before the said authorities. The learned Government Pleader shall also communicate the gist of this judgment to the respondent for enabling the petitioner to obtain an immediate release of the goods and the vehicle.
