Assessee Itself wasn't Diligent in Responding to SCN or Attending Hearing Delhi HC refused to Interfere GST Order passed without Hearing [Read Order]

The Delhi High Court noted that the assessee itself was not diligent in replying to the show cause notice or attending the personal hearing notwithstanding notice, therefore it declined to intervene in a demand order issued by the GST Department without first hearing the assessee.

A division bench consisting of Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Rajneesh Kumar Gupta noted that the Department cannot be held accountable for failing to provide a proper hearing because the Petitioner has not been diligent despite the Department sending show cause and personal hearing notices to the Petitioner.

The petitioner-assessee, Janak Fashions Private Limited, attempted to overturn the CGST assistant commissioner's ruling, which confirmed the demand for an input tax credit of Rs. 34,92,903/-that was purportedly obtained without the receipt of goods, coupled with a corresponding penalty.

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According to the petitioner, he joined the hearing link on January 15, 2025, but he was not given permission to attend the hearing. However, after reviewing the records, the Court discovered that although a personal hearing was scheduled for January 13, 14, and 15, 2025, the Petitioner only wanted to attend on the 15th, and then just to request an extension.

Additionally, it was discovered that the Petitioner had received two show-cause notifications on July 22, 2022, and August 3, 2024, but that no response had been submitted to the SCN dated August 3, 2024. Nearly two weeks after the date of the personal hearing, on January 28, 2025, the contested order was ultimately passed.

The court noted that even after the purported access to the personal hearing was denied, it is evident that no reply was sent to the show cause notice. Beyond that, the Petitioner made no attempt to physically file the documents or submit the reply. The Petitioner's lack of diligence in attending the hearings and filing the reply is evident.

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