Udit Tibrewal Vs State of Assam And 3 Ors. (Gauhati High Court)
In Udit Tibrewal vs. State of Assam, the Gauhati High Court ruled on the validity of an order passed under Section 73(9) of the Assam Goods and Ser-vices Tax (AGST) Act. Udit Tibrewal, a mobile phone dealer, contested an order from the tax au-thorities due to the lack of a valid Show Cause Notice under Section 73(1). Instead of receiving a proper notice, Tibrewal was issued a Summary of Show Cause Notice in Form GST DRC-01, which did not meet the procedural standards required by the AGST Act. This deviation from the pre-scribed process formed the basis of his challenge, as he argued that proper initiation of proceed-ings under Section 73(1) is essential. The court agreed, emphasizing that a formal Show Cause Notice, as mandated, is a prerequisite to any proceedings under Section 73.
The court referenced a previous ruling where similar procedural deficiencies in GST notices led to invalidated orders, underlining the importance of adherence to statutory requirements. It found that issuing only a Summary Notice does not fulfill the AGST Act’s obligations, thus rendering the tax determination order improper. The Gauhati High Court consequently set aside the impugned order, reaffirming that due process cannot be bypassed and granted the tax authorities permission to reinitiate proceedings, should they choose, by issuing a proper Show Cause Notice and observing all procedural mandates.
