Shivalik Containers Pvt. Ltd. Vs Assistant Commissioner & Another (Himachal Pradesh High Court)
The Himachal Pradesh High Court considered a writ petition challenging a show cause notice and order dated 04.01.2023 issued under Section 74 of the CGST Act, 2017, which raised a demand of ₹16,72,140 against the petitioner on the ground that input tax credit (ITC) had been wrongly availed due to non-payment of tax by the supplier. During the proceedings, the State placed instructions on record stating that verification from the GST portal showed that the supplier had subsequently filed the pending returns for February 2020 to March 2020 along with interest, and that the ITC was now available to the petitioner.
The petitioner argued that, in light of this clarification, the impugned order was unsustainable. The State, however, contended that the supplier had deposited tax after a delay of more than five years and that the notice was valid when issued, further arguing that re-adjudication was not permissible without court directions.
The Court held that, considering the official instructions acknowledging availability of ITC after tax payment by the supplier, the matter required reconsideration. Accordingly, the impugned order was set aside, and the adjudicating authority was directed to reopen and re-adjudicate the issue in accordance with law, either determining liability or accepting the ITC claim, by a specified deadline.
