Sun International Limited Vs Commissioner of Delhi Goods And Services Tax (Delhi High Court)
The writ petition challenges an Order-in-Original dated 17.08.2024 issued under Section 73 of the Delhi Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 for the financial year 2019–2020. The order confirmed a tax demand of ₹2,20,76,630 arising from alleged incorrect declaration of tax liabilities in the petitioner’s annual return (Form GSTR-9), particularly due to excess and ineligible Input Tax Credit (ITC), including credits restricted under Section 17(5) of the Act.
The show cause notice dated 29.05.2024, which formed the basis of the demand, was uploaded on the GST portal. However, the petitioner contended that it did not receive any alert or intimation, and the notice did not appear in the “outstanding tax liability” section. As a result, the petitioner neither filed a reply nor participated in the personal hearing. It was argued that this amounted to a violation of the principles of natural justice, rendering the impugned order invalid.
After the petitioner failed to make payment within the stipulated time, recovery proceedings were initiated, including provisional attachment of the petitioner’s bank account under Section 83 through Form GST DRC-22 dated 16.01.2026.
To demonstrate bona fides, the petitioner referred to a subsequent show cause notice for financial year 2021–2022, where it had responded promptly, participated in the hearing, and succeeded in reducing the demand to nil. This was cited to show that the petitioner had a history of compliance when properly notified.
