The Kerala High Court ruled in favor of State GST officers’ authority to issue notices under the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, dismissing a petition that challenged their jurisdiction and scope of cross empowerment in GST laws.
The writ petition was filed by Pinnacle Vehicles and Services Private Limited, which contended that State GST officers lacked the power to issue notices under the CGST Act unless there was a specific government notification, by virtue of Section 6(1) of the CGST Act, which requires such a notification for cross-empowerment of State GST officers.
The petitioner by relying on a ruling of the Madras High Court, submitted that in the absence of such a notification, state officers could not initiate proceedings under the CGST Act.
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The bench held that Section 6(1) of the CGST Act already grants State GST officers the authority to act under the CGST Act, as long as no restrictions or conditions are imposed by the government through a notification.
The bench comprising Justice A.K. Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Easwaran S. held that the law allows for the cross-empowerment of state GST officers without the need for a specific notification unless the government decides to impose certain conditions.
The Kerala High Court dismissed the petition, ruling that the state officers had acted within their rights in issuing the show-cause notice. The bench also noted that the petitioner can still challenge the notice through legal channels.
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