In a recent case, the Jharkhand High Court has quashed the summary of show-cause notice in Form GST DRC-01 as it was found to be issued without the officer’s digital signature.
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Sadanand Prasad Barnwal, the petitioner/assessee’s main argument was that the show cause notice in Form GST DRC-01 was issued without the officer’s signature, seal, or digital signature, and that the order summary in Form GST DRC-07 was also unsigned and lacked the officer’s digital signature.
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The bench of Chief Justice M.S. Ramachandra Rao and Justice Rajesh Shankar observed that both the ruling under Section 73 of the Jharkhand GST Act dated August 28, 2024, and the summary of the show-cause notice in Form GST DRC-01 lack the State Tax Officer’s digital signature.
The bench cited the ruling in Rajendra Modi v. State of Jharkhand, wherein the Jharkhand High Court declared that the department’s practice of issuing show cause notices and issuing orders without a digital or physical signature was discouraged. This was especially true given that Rule 26(3) of the Jharkhand Goods and Services Tax (SGST) Rules, 2017 requires that notices, certificates, or orders be issued only with a digital signature.
The court overturned the order and the procedures, and the department was given the liberty to start over if the law allowed it.
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