Priyadarshini Charitable And Educational Trust vs. The Deputy Commissioner Of Central Tax - Karnataka High Court, 20 January 2026

Cause title — parties, addresses and appearances

- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:3117 WP No. 6854 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 20TH DAY OF JANUARY, 2026 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S SUNIL DUTT YADAV WRIT PETITION NO. 6854 OF 2025 (T-RES) BETWEEN: PRIYADARSHINI CHARITABLE AND EDUCATIONAL TRUST NO. 30, HOSPITECH HOUSE 2ND FLOOR, 17TH CROSS VIJAYA NAGAR, BANGALORE KARNATAKA 560 040 (GSTIN NO. 29AACTP4592J2ZX) REPRESENTED BY ITS PRESIDENT MR. SURESH B N S/O NANJUNDAPPA AGED ABOUT 42 YEARS PAN: CSYPS 2880 Q (UNDER REGISTERED INDIAN TRUST ACT 1882) …PETITIONER (BY SRI. RAJEEV CHANNAPPA NULVI., ADVOCATE) AND: 1. THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF CENTRAL TAX, CIRCLE-4 MYSORE AUDIT COMMISSIONERATE BANGALORE O/O THE PRINCIPAL COMMISSIOENR OF CENTRAL TAX MYSORE AUDIT COMMISIONERATE 1ST FLOOR, JSS TOWER BANASHANKARI III STAGE BANGALORE KARNATAKA 560 085. Digitally signed by VIDYA G R Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:3117 WP No. 6854 of 2025 2. THE SUPERINTENDENT OF CENTRAL TAX MYSORE AUDIT COMMISSIONERATE BANGALORE O/O THE PRINCIPAL COMMISSIOENR OF CENTRAL TAX MYSORE AUDIT COMMISIONERATE 1ST FLOOR, JSS TOWER BANASHANKARI, III STAGE BANGALORE, KARNATAKA 560 085. 3. THE SUPERINTENDENT OF CENTRAL TAX RANGE C, WEST DIVISON-2 BANGALORE O/O THE SUPERINTENDENT OF CENTRAL TAX, RANGE C DIVISION-2, WEST COMMISSIONERATE 1ST FLOOR, BMTC BUILDING BANASHANKARI, BANGALORE KARNATKA 560 070. …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. ARAVIND V CHAVAN., ADVOCATE) THIS WP IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO QUASH THE ORDER OF ORIGINAL U/S 74 R.W.S 74(1), 50(1) AND 122(2)(B) OF THE CGST ACT, 2017 VIDE OIO SL. NO. 150/2024-25/GST/WD- 2/SUPDT, DIN:20250157YU0000414414 ON 09/01/2025 PASSED BY THE RESPONDENT NO.3 AUTHORITY i.e., THE SUPERINTENDENT OF CENTRAL TAX, RANGE C, WEST DIVISION-2, BANGALORE (ANNEXURE-J) AND ETC., THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING IN 'B' GROUP, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S SUNIL DUTT YADAV - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:3117 WP No. 6854 of 2025

ORAL ORDER

The petitioner has challenged the Order-in-Original at Annexure-'J' dated 09.01.2025 passed under Section 74 read with Section 74(1), 50(1) and 122(2)(B) of the CGST Act, 2017 passed by respondent No.

The petitioner has also sought for setting aside of Form GST-DRC-07 at Annexure-'J1' dated 31.01.2025 for the Financial Years 2017-2018 to 2019-2020 issued by respondent No.3. 2. It is the case of the petitioner that the Order-in-Original is bad in law, as the show cause notice at Annexure-'E' dated 16.12.2022 relates to the tax period from July 2017 to March 2020. It is submitted that there cannot be a single notice with respect to different tax periods.

It is submitted that, once the show cause notice issued is one without juri iction, the order of adjudication requires to be set aside as not being legally tenable. HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:3117

Reliance is placed on the order of this Court dated 17.12.2025 passed in W.P.No.22726/2025 in the case of M/s. Lakshmi Venkateshwara Traders MS Scrap v. The Deputy Commissioner of Central Tax and Another, wherein reference is made to the order of the Co-ordinate Bench dated 11.12.2025 passed in W.P.No.33081/2025 in the case of M/s. Pramur Homes and Shelters v. The Union of India and Others.

The observations made in W.P.No.22726/2025 read as follows:-

Though several contentions have been urged by both sides in support of their respective claims, the issue in controversy between the parties is directly and squarely covered by the judgment of this Court in the case of M/S Pramur Homes And Shelters Vs. The Union of India and Ors. in WP No.33081/2025 dated 11.12.2025. 3. In the said judgment, this Court formulated two points for consideration, which reads as under: (i)Whether clubbing/consolidation/bunching/ combining of multiple tax periods/ financial years in a Single/Composite Show cause HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:3117 notice issued under Section 73 / 74 of the CGST/ KGST Act , 2017 is permissible and valid in law?

(ii) Whether the impugned Show cause notice dated 30.09.2025 issued by the 4th respondent to the petitioner for the tax periods/financial years from 2019-20 to 2023-24 under Section 74 of the CGST/ KGST Act, 2017 warrants interference by this Court in the present petition?

Issue No.1 was answered by this Court in favour of the petitioner by holding as under: Point No.(i) is accordingly answered in favour of the petitioner/tax payer/assessee by holding that clubbing/ consolidation/ bunching/ combining of multiple tax periods/financial years in a Solitary/Single/Composite Show cause notice issued under Section 73/74 of the CGST/KGST Act is illegal, invalid, impermissible and without juri iction or authority of law and contrary to the provisions of the CGST/KGST Act.

So also point No.2 was also answered by this Court in favour of the petitioner by quashing the impugned Show Cause Notice by holding as under: “Re: Point No.(ii);

While dealing with Point No. (i) supra, I have already come to the conclusion that clubbing / consolidation / bunching/ combining of multiple tax periods/financial years in a Solitary/Single/ Composite Show cause notice issued under Section 73 / 74 of the CGST / KGST Act is illegal, invalid, impermissible and without juri iction or authority of law and contrary to the provisions of the CGST / KGST Act. In the instant case, a perusal of the HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:3117 impugned Show cause notice dated 30.09.2025 will indicate that the same encompasses and pertains to multiple tax periods/financial years, viz., from 2019-20 to 2023-24, which is impermissible in law and consequently, the impugned Show cause notice and all further proceedings pursuant thereto are also vitiated and deserve to be quashed reserving liberty to the respondents to initiate any action/proceedings in accordance with law.

Point No.(ii) is also accordingly answered in favour of the petitioner/tax payer/assessee by holding that the impugned Show cause notice dated 30.09.2025 issued by the 4th respondent to the petitioner for the tax periods/financial years from 2019-20 to 2023-24 under Section 74 of the CGST/KGST Act is illegal, invalid, impermissible, arbitrary and without juri iction or authority of law and contrary to the provisions of the CGST/KGST Act and the impugned show cause notice and all further proceedings, orders, notices pursuant thereto deserve to be quashed by reserving liberty in favour of the respondents to initiate proceedings in accordance with law.

10.

In the result, I pass the following: ORDER

(i) Petition is hereby allowed.

(ii) The impugned show-cause notice at Annexure-A dated 30.09.2025 issued by respondent No.4 and all further proceedings, orders, notices etc., pursuant thereto initiated/to be initiated by the respondents are hereby quashed. (iii) The respondents are however reserved liberty to initiate appropriate proceedings in accordance with law and if such proceedings are initiated by the respondents, petitioner would be entitled to contest / defend the same in accordance with law.” HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:3117

The issue in controversy involved in the present petition also relates to clubbing/consolidation/bunching/combining of multiple tax periods/financial years/block periods in a Single/Composite Show cause notice, which has already been held to be invalid and illegal by this Court in M/S Pramur Homes And Shelters’s case referred to Supra.

Under these circumstances, the impugned show cause notices both dated 31.03.2022 at Annexures- F and F1 passed by respondent No.1 deserve to be quashed.

In the result, I pass the following: ORDER

(i) Petition is hereby allowed and disposed of in terms of M/S Pramur India and Ors. in WP No.33081/2025 dated 11.12.2025. (ii) The impugned show cause notices both dated 31.03.2022 at Annexures- F and F1 passed by respondent No.1 and all further proceedings, orders, notices etc., pursuant thereto initiated/to be initiated by the respondents are hereby quashed.

(iii) The respondents are however reserved liberty to initiate appropriate proceedings in accordance with law and if such proceedings are initiated by the respondents, petitioner would be entitled to contest / defend the same in accordance with law."

Taking note of the show cause notice issued in the present case at Annexure-'E', which relates to the HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:3117 period between October 2017 to October 2019 as well as on perusal of order of adjudication, which happens once in a year and the tax period spans from July 2017 to March 2020 and in light of the decision in M/s. Pramur Homes And Shelters v. The Union of India and Others, the show cause notice issued is defective. If that were to be so, the order of adjudication requires to be set aside.

Accordingly, the Order-in-Original at Annexure-'J' dated 09.01.2025, Form GST-DRC-07 at Annexure-'J1' dated 31.01.2025 and the show cause notice at Annexure-'E' dated 16.12.2022 are set aside as well as the consequent proceedings. The respondents are however reserved liberty to initiate appropriate proceedings in accordance with law as regards which show cause notice was issued as is permissible in law. All contentions are kept open. (S SUNIL DUTT YADAV) JUDGE

VGR