The Madras High Court has granted a final opportunity to a trader and reseller of pharmaceutical products to address the reason for not filing the Goods and Services Tax ( GST ) annual returns for the assessment year 2018-19.
The petitioner, registered under the GST Act, 2017, argued that while regular returns and taxes for 2018-19 were filed and paid, annual returns in Form GSTR-9 and GSTR-9C were not submitted. Notices in Form DRC-01A and DRC-01 were issued on October 26, 2022, and July 7, 2023, respectively, followed by a personal hearing opportunity on July 18, 2023.
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However, the petitioner neither responded to the notices nor attended the hearing, citing lack of proper service as the reason. The petitioner claimed that the notices were uploaded only on the GST portal without being served via registered post or tender, leaving them unaware of the proceedings.
The petitioner relied on a precedent set in M/s. K. Balakrishnan, Balu Cables vs. Assistant Commissioner of GST & Central Excise, where the Court had remanded a similar matter subject to the payment of 25% of disputed taxes. Expressing willingness to comply with this condition, the petitioner sought a final opportunity to present objections and clarify discrepancies.
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Justice Mohammed Shaffiq set aside the impugned order and directed the petitioner to deposit 25% of the disputed tax within four weeks. The assessment order will now be treated as a show-cause notice, requiring the petitioner to file objections and supporting documents within the same timeframe. The GST authorities are required to consider these objections and pass a fresh order after affording the petitioner a reasonable hearing.
The Court clarified that failure to deposit the required amount or submit objections within the stipulated period would result in the restoration of the original assessment order. Accordingly, the writ petition was disposed of without costs.
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