A Single Bench of the Calcutta High Court observed that the Tax Officer must have to provide personal opportunity of hearing even without request from assessee under Section 73 of West Bengal Goods and Services Tax Act (WBGST).
The petitioner, Mohammad Ilyas, has challenged the impugned order, under Section 73 of the WBGST Act, 2017, on the ground of violation of principle of natural justice as well as in disregarding the criteria laid down under Section 75(4) of the West Bengal Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 . Section 75(4) of the West Bengal Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 requires a proper officer to provide an opportunity of hearing in case any adverse decision is contemplated against such an assessee.
The opportunity of providing personal hearing has not been observed by the respondent authority (Assistant Commissioner of Revenue) in the present matter. It is an admitted and undisputed position that the order passed without providing reasonable opportunity of hearing to the assessee is an adverse decision.
Even without any request having been made on the part of the party concerned, when any adverse decision is contemplated, personal hearing is a must. The same is missing in the instant case and the request on the part of the petitioners is to remand the matter by directing the respondents to consider the matter afresh by giving the fullest opportunity to the party to present their case.
The Court of Justice Md. Nizamuddin relied on the judgment of the Allahabad High Court in the case of Bharat Mint and Allied Chemicals vs. Commissioner of Commercial-tax, wherein it was observed that all those decisions in an unequivocal terms Courts have opined that even without any request for personal hearing by an assessee, the officer must have to provide personal opportunity of hearing, if the order is contemplated to be adverse.
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