Bambino Agro Industries Ltd Vs State of U.P. and another (Allahabad High Court)
The Allahabad High Court allowed a writ petition challenging a show cause notice dated 25.09.2023 and an ex parte demand order dated 08.12.2023 issued under Section 73 of the GST Act for the financial year 2017-18. The petitioner contended that the notices and orders were uploaded on the “Additional Notices and Orders” tab of the GST portal instead of the “Due Notices and Orders” tab, due to which the petitioner remained unaware of the proceedings and could not appear before the authority or challenge the order within the limitation period. The petitioner relied on the earlier decision in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd., where the Court had granted relief in similar circumstances. The Department did not dispute that the notices had been uploaded under the “Additional Notices and Orders” tab and accepted that the issue was covered by the earlier judgment. Relying on the precedent, the High Court held that the petitioner was entitled to the benefit of doubt and quashed the show cause notice and ex parte demand order. The Court directed the Assessing Officer to issue a fresh notice with at least 15 clear days’ notice in the prescribed manner and proceed further in accordance with law.
