“View Additional Notices and Orders” in GST Portal does not Constitute valid service of notice as Per S. 69(1)(d): Calcutta HC [Read Order]

The Calcutta High Court held that “View Additional Notices and Orders” in the goods and service tax ( GST ) Portal does not constitute valid service of notice as per section 69(1)(d) of Central Goods and Service Tax ( CGST ) Act,2017.

Sukumar Kundu, the petitioner challenged the show cause notice issued under Section 73 of the WBGST/CGST Act, 2017 along with the adjudication order issued under Section 73(9) of the said Act, inter alia, including the notice issued under Section 79(1)(c) of the said Act dated 21 February 2024 issued in Form GST DRC-13, thereby attaching the petitioner’s bank account and calling upon the petitioner’s banker to make payment.

The petitioner is a registered taxpayer ( RTP ), under the provisions of the said Act. Although a proceeding under Section 73 of the said Act was initiated, which culminated in an order dated 28th August 2023 passed under Section 73(9) of the said Act, the petitioner had come to learn about the factum.

The petitioner claimed that the aforesaid show cause notice was not uploaded in the “view notices and orders” section of the portal and as such the petitioner did not know about the same. The show-cause notice was uploaded in the “view additional notices and orders” section of the portal.

Consequentially, an ex parte adjudication order was passed and the same was also. Uploaded in the “view additional notices and orders” section of the portal. As such, the petitioner also did not know with regard to the same, until receipt of the intimation from the petitioner’s banker that a notice in form GST DRC-13 dated 21 February 2024 had been issued and served on the petitioner’s banker. The entire proceeding stands vitiated by reasons of failure on the part of the respondents to offer an adequate opportunity to the petitioner, firstly to respond to the

show cause and secondly denying the petitioner an opportunity to challenge the said order, since both the notice as well as the adjudication order, were uploaded in the “view additional notices and orders” section of the portal in stead and place of “view notices and orders” section.

Mr. Siddiqui, advocate appearing for the respondents submitted that although, in the show cause notice the petitioner has been afforded 15 days time to respond, the adjudication order was passed after 30 days. No attempt was made by the petitioner to file any response. Having regard to the aforesaid, it is submitted that the petitioner cannot claim to have suffered any prejudice.

If the petitioner wanted to respond, he could have done so even after expiry of the period mentioned in the show-cause but before passing of the order under Section 73(9) of the said Act. The order under Section 73(9) of the said Act was passed admittedly, after 30 days from the date of issuance of the show-cause, as such the contention.

A single bench of Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury viewed that since, there may have been some confusion in identifying the notice/orders in the prep-redesigned dashboard of the portal, the petitioner should be permitted to approach the appellate authority.

The Court quashed the order of attachment.

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