Sri Srinivasa Enterprises Vs Assistant Commissioner (Andhra Pradesh High Court)
Andhra Pradesh High Court has once again emphasized the critical requirement for tax orders to bear a manual or digital signature, quashing an order issued to Sri Srinivasa Enterprises by the Assistant Commissioner. The ruling, delivered today, highlights the court’s consistent stance that an unsigned order holds no legal validity and cannot be enforced.
The petitioner, Sri Srinivasa Enterprises, challenged the order in FORM GST DRC-07 dated August 4, 2023, primarily on the grounds that it was not signed. Learned Senior Counsel Sri Bhaskar Reddy Vemireddy, representing the petitioner, argued that without a signature, the document is “no order in the eyes of law” and therefore cannot be implemented. He drew parallels to previous judgments by the High Court, specifically W.P.No.29397 of 2023 (decided on November 10, 2023) and W.P. No. 30109 of 2023 (decided on November 21, 2023). These precedents, he asserted, clearly establish that Sections 160 and 169 of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Act, 2017, do not permit the dispensing of signatures.
A secondary contention raised by the petitioner’s counsel was that the impugned order was based on a ground not mentioned in the original show cause notice, implying a violation of natural justice. However, the court did not delve into the merits of this second argument, focusing solely on the signature issue.
