M/S Vidya Embroiders vs. The Union Of INDIA And 4 Others

Facts

The petitioner, M/s Vidya Embroiders, filed a writ petition challenging orders dated 08.04.2024 and 08.12.2023 passed by the Deputy Commissioner, State Tax Jurisdiction, Bareilly. These orders created a GST demand against the petitioner for the financial year 2018-19. The petitioner contended that the notices and orders were uploaded on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab of the GST portal, not the 'Due Notices and Orders' tab. Consequently, the petitioner was unaware of the proceedings and could not respond or challenge the orders within the limitation period. The revenue did not dispute these contentions regarding the uploading of notices and orders.

Held

The Court held that the petitioner was entitled to the benefit of doubt. The reasoning was based on the fact that the notices and orders were uploaded on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab of the GST portal, which prevented the petitioner from being aware of the proceedings and availing their remedies within the prescribed limitation period. The Court found that the issue was squarely covered by a previous judgment of a coordinate bench in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. v. State of U.P. & 2 others. The Court quashed and set aside the impugned orders dated 08.04.2024 and 08.12.2023. The operative direction was for the Assessing Officer to issue a fresh notice to the petitioner with at least 15 days' clear notice, in accordance with law, and to proceed further based on that notice. The Court did not expressly leave any issue undecided.

Key Issues

1. Whether the uploading of notices and orders on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab of the GST portal, instead of the 'Due Notices and Orders' tab, constitutes proper communication to the assessee under the Uttar Pradesh Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017? 2. Whether the petitioner is entitled to a benefit of doubt and a fresh opportunity to respond, given the manner of uploading the impugned orders? Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner argued that the notices and orders were not properly communicated as they were uploaded on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab, preventing them from appearing before the authority or questioning the validity of the orders within the limitation period. They relied on the High Court's decision in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. v. State of U.P. & 2 others. Revenue's Argument: The counsel for the Department did not dispute the contentions raised by the petitioner regarding the uploading of notices and orders on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab and acknowledged that the issue was covered by the judgment in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (Supra).