Essel Kitchenware Limited & Anr. Vs Joint Commissioner of State Tax (Calcutta High Court)
In the case of Essel Kitchenware Limited & Anr. vs. Joint Commissioner of State Tax, the Calcutta High Court addressed a dispute involving a GST order under Section 73(9) of the CGST Act, 2017. The petitioners argued that they were unaware of a show cause notice (SCN) issued in March 2023 due to their consultant’s failure to inform them. The consultant had uploaded the SCN on the GST portal but did not convey this to the petitioners before leaving the job. As a result, the petitioners missed the opportunity to respond, leading to an adverse order in August 2023. The court noted that the petitioners made a genuine error in their GSTR-3B filing for the 2017-18 financial year, which they later corrected in their GSTR-9 return. However, this rectification was not considered due to their absence in the proceedings. The court set aside the previous order and remanded the case for fresh consideration, allowing the petitioners to submit a response within 10 days. Additionally, the court imposed a penalty of ₹50,000, to be paid to the State Legal Services Authority, as a condition for the remand.
