ED And F Man Commodities India Pvt. Ltd. Vs Assistant Commissioner State Tax And Ors. (Calcutta High Court)
Calcutta High Court has set aside the cancellation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) registration for ED And F Man Commodities India Pvt. Ltd., effective retrospectively from July 1, 2017. The Division Bench’s ruling, delivered in an intra-court appeal against a previous single bench order, emphasized severe procedural flaws, including a defective show cause notice (SCN) and flagrant violations of the principles of natural justice. The case has been remanded to the original authority for fresh proceedings, ensuring a proper opportunity for the appellant to present its case.
The genesis of the dispute lies in the cancellation of the appellant’s registration under the West Bengal Goods and Services Tax (WBGST) Act. ED And F Man Commodities initially challenged the cancellation order passed by the original authority, which was subsequently affirmed by the appellate authority, through a writ petition. The primary grounds for challenge were a fundamental lack of jurisdiction, the absence of specific reasons in the show cause notice, and the equally unreasoned orders issued by both the original and appellate authorities.
A critical procedural defect highlighted by the appellant was the appellate authority’s reliance on an inspection report dated December 14, 2021. This report, generated just one day prior to the issuance of the show cause notice on December 15, 2021, was allegedly never furnished to the appellant. This omission, the appellant argued, was in direct contravention of Rule 25 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Rules, which mandates the uploading of such reports along with all connected material within 15 days. The writ court had initially dismissed the petition, leading to the present intra-court appeal.
