Tvl. Diamond Shipping Agencies Private Limited Vs Assistant Commissioner (ST) (Madras High Court)
In a significant legal development, the Madras High Court (Madurai Bench) has issued a ruling that underscores the importance of adhering to procedural requirements in the realm of GST assessments. The court held in the case of M/s. Tvl. Diamond Shipping Agencies Pvt. Ltd. v. Assistant Commissioner, Tuticorin [W.P. (MD) 6874 of 2023 dated August 29, 2023] that an assessment order cannot be valid if it is passed without serving proper notice, as mandated by Section 169(1)(b) of theCentral Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (CGST Act).
Facts:
M/s. Tvl. Diamond Shipping Agencies Pvt. Ltd. (“the Petitioner”) operates three business verticals on the same PAN. The Revenue Department (“the Respondent”) passed the order dated August 17, 2022, (“the Impugned Order”) of the CGST Act raising demand against the Petitioner vide GST DRC-07 dated August 17, 2022.
Aggrieved by the Impugned Order, the Petitioner filed a writ petition before the Hon’ble Madras High Court (Madurai Bench) for setting aside the Impugned Order and directing the Respondent to re-do the assessment. It was submitted that the Impugned Order was passed without considering the Annual Returns in GSTR-9 and the Audit Statement filed in GSTR-9C. No opportunity has been granted to the Petitioner to submit the required documents. It was further submitted that, no physical notice/order was served under Section 169(1)(b) of the CGST Act, and no opportunity was granted to the Petitioner to appear before the Respondent, therefore the Impugned Order passed, violates the principle of natural justice.
Issue:
Whether the assessment order could be passed without serving notice as per conditions stipulated in Section 169(1)(b) of the CGST Act?
Held:
The Hon’ble Madras High Court (Madras Bench) in W.P. (MD) 6874 of 2023 held as under:
