Ajara Design Lounge PVT. LTD. vs. State Of Karnataka

Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned AGA for the respondents and perused the material on record.

A perusal of the material on record will indicate that on 11.04.2023, respondent No.2 issued Show Cause Notice to the petitioner under Section 73(1) of the GST Act, 2017, to which the petitioner did not submit reply nor produced any documents, as a result of which respondent No.2 proceeded to pass the impugned exparte adjudication order dated 14.06.2023. Aggrieved by the said order, the petitioner filed an appeal before the First Appellate Authority on 04.09.2023. The said Appeal was dismissed on merits by the Appellate Authority vide impugned order dated 26.12.2024, aggrieved by which, the petitioner is before this Court by way of the present petition since the Appellate Tribunal under the CGST/KGST Act has not been constituted. It is further submitted that the inability and omission on the part of the petitioner to submit reply along with documents to the Show Cause Notice and contest the proceedings was due to bonafide reasons, unavoidable circumstances and sufficient cause and as such, the impugned adjudication order as well as the order of the Appellate Authority NC: 2025:KHC:16975 deserve to be set aside and the matter be remitted back to respondent No.2 for reconsideration afresh, in accordance with law.

Per contra, learned HCGP appearing for the respondents submits that there is no merit in the petition and that the same is liable to be dismissed.

A perusal of the material on record will indicate that it is an undisputed fact that the impugned order at Annexure-A dated 14.06.2023 passed by respondent No.2 was an exparte adjudication order, without the petitioner submitting his reply or documents to the Show Cause Notice dated 11.04.2023. Under these circumstances, in order to provide one more opportunity to the petitioner, by adopting a justice oriented approach, I deem just and appropriate to set aside the impugned adjudication order and remit the matter be remitted back to respondent No.2 for reconsideration afresh, in accordance with law.

Insofar as the impugned order at Annexure-F dated 26.12.2024 is concerned, since the appeal was dismissed on merits and the Appellate Tribunal under the CGST/KGST has not been constituted, the order of the Appellate Authority will not come NC: 2025:KHC:16975 in the way of this Court exercising its juri iction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India and setting aside the adjudication order and remit the matter back to respondent No.2 for reconsideration afresh in accordance with law.

In the result, I pass the following: ORDER i) The petition is hereby allowed. ii) The order at Annexure-G dated 14.06.2023 passed by respondent No.4 and the impugned order at Annexure-A dated 26.12.2024 passed by respondent No.2 are hereby set aside. iii) The matter is remitted back to the stage of submitting reply to the Show Cause Notice at Annexure – F dated 11.04.2023. iv) Liberty is reserved in favour of the petitioner to submit documents, pleadings etc., which shall be considered by respondent Nos.3 and 4, in accordance with law. v) The petitioner is directed to appear before respondent No.4 on 19.05.2025, without awaiting further notice. NC: 2025:KHC:16975 vi) In the event the petitioner does not appear before respondent No.4 on 19.05.2025, this order shall automatically stand recalled / revived, without further reference to the Bench. (S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR) JUDGE