ED Summons Missed Due to Distance, Not Ignored: Gauhati HC directs ED to grant Bail to GST Accused with Aadhar, PAN and Voter ID Surrender [Read Order]

The Gauhati High Court has granted anticipatory bail to a GST ( Goods and Services Tax ) -linked accused after noting that his failure to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in accordance with summons was not deliberate but caused due to geographical distance and delayed receipt of the notice.

The case belonged to Atish Kumar Tiwari, the accused-applicant, against whom the ED had issued summons on 23 September 2025, directing him to appear before its Itanagar Sub-Zonal Office on 10 October 2025 in connection with an investigation. The accused approached the High Court apprehending arrest after missing the appearance date.

Before the Court, the accused submitted that he was residing in Bihar, and the summons reached him almost a month after its issuance, making it impossible for him to appear on the scheduled date.

It was also submitted by the applicant that the GST dues allegedly involved in the matter had already been paid and that the applicant was willing to cooperate fully with the investigation.

The Enforcement Directorate, on the other hand, informed the Court that a fresh summons dated 2 December 2025 had already been issued, directing the accused to appear on 15 December 2025, and argued that anticipatory bail was therefore unnecessary.

The Gauhati High Court observed that the accused had missed the earlier summons due to his place of residence and not due to any intentional non-cooperation.

The bench considering the willingness of the accused-applicant to appear before the ED on the next scheduled date, the Court held that the case was fit for granting anticipatory bail.

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Accordingly, the Court directed that in the event of his arrest, the accused shall be released on bail on furnishing a bond of ₹50,000 with two sureties of the like amount. The bail was made subject to strict conditions, including mandatory appearance before the ED on 15 December 2025 and full cooperation with the investigation.

The Court further directed the accused to surrender his Passport, Aadhaar Card, PAN Card, and Electoral Photo Identity Card before the ED to make sure his availability during the investigation. It was also clarified that any violation of these conditions would entitle the ED to seek cancellation of bail.

Accordingly, with these observations, the anticipatory bail application was disposed of by the Gauhati High Court.

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