Tara Marine Syndicate Private Limited & Anr Vs Superintendent (Calcutta High Court)
Calcutta High Court has allowed Tara Marine Syndicate Private Limited and another petitioner to challenge a Goods and Services Tax (GST) show cause cum demand notice and its subsequent adjudication order in a composite manner. The petition was initially filed to contest a show cause notice dated July 23, 2024, issued under Section 74 of the Central/West Bengal Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, for the tax period 2017-18 to 2019-2020.
During the proceedings, Mr. Kanodia, counsel for the petitioners, informed the court that an adjudication order (Order in Original) had already been passed on February 5, 2025, by the proper officer, in furtherance of the impugned show cause notice. He sought to challenge this adjudication order by filing a connected application (CAN 1 of 2025).
The court, however, observed that challenging the adjudication order through a mere connected application was not appropriate, as it constituted a separate cause of action. Nevertheless, considering that the show cause notice had already been adjudicated and effectively merged with the final order, the High Court decided to dispose of the writ petition. The petitioners have been granted permission to challenge both the show cause notice and the adjudication order dated February 5, 2025, in a composite legal proceeding, if they choose to do so in accordance with the law. The writ petition and the connected application stand disposed of with these observations and directions. The court noted that since no affidavit-in-opposition was called for, the allegations made by the petitioners are not deemed admitted by the respondents. No specific judicial precedents were cited in the order.
