ATR Malleable Casting Private Limited Vs Inspector of Central Taxes (Calcutta High Court)
Calcutta High Court held that payment made during the course of search cannot be said to be voluntary payment. Such payment made cannot be retained by the department as acknowledgment in GST DRC-04 not given.
Facts- The main relief sought for in the writ petition was to refund a sum of Rs.30,00,000/-, which the appellants would allege was forced to be paid by them under the threat of arrest, coercion and undue influence on 22nd March, 2023.
Notably, the writ petition was dismissed on the ground that the allegation made by the appellants that there was no proper authorization in INS-0 1 was a false statement since the revenue, during the course of argument, had produced a copy of the INS-01 dated 12th June, 2023. Therefore, the Court was not inclined to entertain the writ petition. Being aggrieved, the appellants have filed the present appeal.
Conclusion- Held that the payment of tax by a taxpayer during the course of search could not be have been stated to be voluntarily made. Furthermore, as pointed out earlier, there was no receipt issued in GST DRC – 04 by the authority.
