Summary: In the case of Raghuveer Ispat Private Limited v. State of UP [Writ Tax No. 222 of 2021], the Allahabad High Court set aside a penalty imposed under Section 129(3) of the CGST Act due to an expired e-way bill during goods transportation. The Petitioner, M/s. Raghuveer Ispat Private Limited, challenged the penalty on the grounds that the only discrepancy was the expiration of the e-way bill, which occurred due to vehicle engine failure. The goods were accompanied by all relevant documents and matched the invoice description, indicating no intent to evade tax. The Petitioner cited a previous Allahabad High Court judgment, which held that penalties should not be imposed for technical violations where there is no intention to evade taxes. Accepting these arguments, the Court ruled that the penalty and appellate orders were unjustified and ordered the Revenue department to refund the tax and penalty paid by the Petitioner within four weeks. This judgment underscores that penalties for e-way bill violations should not be levied when there is no evidence of tax evasion.
The Hon’ble Allahabad High Court in Raghuveer Ispat Private Limited v. State of UP [Writ Tax No. 222 of 2021 dated May 29, 2024], allowed the writ petition and set aside the order imposing penalty under Section 129(3) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act (“the CGST Act”) on the ground that e-way bill expired during the course of transportation of goods. The Hon’ble High Court also directed the Revenue department to refund the amount of tax and penalty deposited by the Assessee within four weeks from the date of the order.
Facts:
M/s. Raghuveer Ispat Private Limited (“the Petitioner”), filed writ Petition challenging the penalty and appellate order dated December 09, 2017 and May 08, 2019 (“the Impugned Orders”) passed under Sections 129(3) and 107 of the Uttar Pradesh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (“the UPGST Act”) on the ground that transportation of goods had taken place based on expired e-way bill. The Petitioner argued that the only discrepancy that existed was e-way bill issued in relation to transportation of goods was expired. Also, it was contended that the goods were accompanied by relevant documents and were as per invoice description. It was further submitted that e-way bill expired due to the delay caused during transportation by the vehicle’s engine failure. The Petitioner also relied upon the judgment of Hon’ble Allahabad High Court in the case of M/s. Globe Panel Industries India Private Ltd. [Writ Tax No. 141 of 2023 dated February 05, 2024] wherein it was held that the penalty should not be imposed due to technical violation when there was no intention to evade payment of tax.
Held:
The Hon’ble Allahabad High Court in Writ Tax No. 222 of 2024, accepted the submissions made by the Petitioner and held that, the Impugned Orders are liable to be set aside and thereafter, refund the amount of tax and penalty deposited by the Petitioner within four weeks from the date of the order. Hence, the writ petition was allowed.
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