Sunil Thampy Nair Vs State of Maharashtra (Bombay High Court)
Order against deceased person held void; Revenue can proceed afresh against legal heirs under GST Law
The Bombay High Court, in the case of Sunil Thampy Nair v. State of Maharashtra, determined that a tax demand order issued against a person who had been deceased for five years was a legal nullity. The petitioner, Sunil Thampy Nair, challenged the order and a subsequent property attachment notice, arguing that the proceedings were void because they were initiated against a dead person. The court agreed with this principle but noted that Section 93 of the CGST Act, 2017, permits the Revenue to recover tax dues from the legal representatives of a deceased taxpayer. Based on this, the court quashed the initial order and attachment notice, granting the department the liberty to issue a new show cause notice to the legal representatives. The petitioner provided an affidavit listing all legal heirs and the deceased’s property, and the department committed to issuing a new notice within four weeks and concluding the adjudication within six months. This decision is consistent with rulings from other courts, such as the Allahabad High Court, which have similarly held that tax liability cannot be determined against a deceased individual and that any such proceedings must be conducted against their legal heirs to comply with the principles of natural justice.
