Teju Granites Vs Assistant Commissioner State Taxes Markapur Circle and Others (Andhra Pradesh High Court)
Andhra Pradesh High Court ruled in favor of Teju Granites, setting aside a GST assessment order issued by the Assistant Commissioner of State Taxes. The petitioner challenged the order primarily on two grounds: the absence of the assessing officer’s signature and the missing Document Identification Number (DIN). The court acknowledged that these deficiencies rendered the order invalid, citing previous judgments where similar omissions had led to annulments. Specifically, the court referred to rulings in V. Bhanoji Row v. Assistant Commissioner, SRK Enterprises v. Assistant Commissioner, and SRS Traders v. Assistant Commissioner, which had established that both a valid signature and DIN are necessary for an assessment order to hold legal weight. Furthermore, the Supreme Court’s ruling in Pradeep Goyal v. Union of India reaffirmed that an order without a DIN is non-est and unenforceable.
Relying on these precedents and a CBIC circular dated 23.12.2019, the court determined that the assessment order issued to Teju Granites was invalid. Consequently, it set aside the order while granting the tax authorities the liberty to conduct a fresh assessment in compliance with legal requirements. The period from the date of the impugned order until the receipt of this judgment was excluded from the limitation period for reassessment. The court disposed of the writ petition without imposing costs. This decision reinforces the necessity of procedural compliance in tax assessments, ensuring that legal mandates such as signatures and DINs are adhered to in official proceedings.
