Manpower Group Services India Pvt Ltd Vs Sales Tax Officer (Delhi High Court)
In a significant ruling, the Delhi High Court has set aside a demand of over ₹10 crore raised by the Sales Tax Officer against Manpower Group Services India Pvt Ltd. The court’s decision, issued on April 30, 2024, came after the petitioner challenged the order, arguing that it was passed without proper application of mind and failed to consider the detailed replies and documents they had submitted.
Background and Proceedings
The case originated from a show cause notice issued to Manpower Group Services India Pvt Ltd on January 19, 2024. The notice, based on an audit observation, alleged a mismatch of over ₹29 crore between the Input Tax Credit (ITC) claimed in the company’s GSTR-3B/9 returns and the ITC available in GSTR-2A returns. This mismatch was flagged as a “risk” of excess ITC availment. The petitioner initially filed a writ petition challenging the vagueness of the show cause notice, which was subsequently disposed of with a direction for the company to submit a detailed response and appear before the tax authorities for adjudication.
In compliance with the court’s directions, Manpower Group Services filed a comprehensive reply on April 18, 2024, followed by an additional reply on April 24, 2024. However, the Sales Tax Officer passed an order on April 30, 2024, under Section 73 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, which imposed a demand of ₹10,04,94,110, including a penalty. The petitioner challenged this order, contending that the tax officer’s decision was a “cryptic order” that simply stated the replies were “not satisfactory” without providing any specific reasoning.
