Shekhar Kumar @ Shekhar Bagaria Vs State of West Bengal & Ors. (Calcutta High Court)
In the case of Shekhar Kumar @ Shekhar Bagaria vs State of West Bengal & Ors., the Calcutta High Court reviewed a penalty imposed under Section 129 of the West Bengal GST Act, 2017. The dispute arose when goods in a conveyance were intercepted at Sitaguri on May 17, 2024. The person in charge of the vehicle could not produce a physical tax invoice at the time. Additionally, authorities claimed that the vehicle was not on the designated geographical route as per the e-way bill. Based on these findings, a penalty was imposed and later affirmed by the appellate authority on January 16, 2025.
The petitioner challenged the penalty on the grounds that Section 138A of the GST Rules allows for electronic display of invoices under certain conditions, and that mere deviation from the stated route cannot, by itself, establish an intention to evade tax. The petitioner also presented decisions from other High Courts, including Karnataka and Allahabad, which held that deviation in transportation routes alone does not justify invoking Section 129 unless there is an indication of tax evasion. Furthermore, the petitioner emphasized that the e-way bill was valid, the goods matched the bill details, and no discrepancies in tax payment existed.
