Ankit Agarwal vs. The Union Of INDIA And 2 Ors.

Facts

The petitioner, Ankit Agarwal, filed an anticipatory bail application before the Gauhati High Court. The respondents are the Union of India, represented by the Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax (GST), the Additional Director General of Food and Service Tax Intelligence, and the Senior Intelligence Officer, Guwahati Zonal Unit. The petitioner's counsel, Ms. S. Sarkar, submitted that they were instructed not to press the application in its current form and requested permission to file a fresh application. The learned Standing Counsel for GST did not object to this request.

Held

The Court allowed the petitioner's prayer to withdraw the anticipatory bail application in its present form and granted liberty to file a fresh application. The Court noted that the learned Standing Counsel for GST did not object to this request. Consequently, the anticipatory bail application was closed on withdrawal, with the liberty to apply afresh. No substantive issues regarding GST law or the merits of the anticipatory bail were decided, as the application was withdrawn procedurally.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioner should be granted liberty to withdraw the present anticipatory bail application and file a fresh one, considering the submission that they are under instructions not to press it in its present form. Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner, through their counsel, sought permission to withdraw the application and file a fresh one, indicating that the current application was not to be pressed. This implies a procedural request rather than a substantive legal argument on the merits of anticipatory bail. Revenue's Argument: The Standing Counsel for GST did not object to the petitioner's request to withdraw and file afresh. This indicates the revenue's stance was not to oppose the procedural move by the petitioner.