K Ranganath Adiga vs. The Principal Commissioner Of Central Tax
Held
The Court held that the apprehension of arrest in a non-bailable offence is a sine qua non for maintaining a petition under Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. The summons issued to the petitioner was for his appearance in person along with documents for an inquiry into service tax matters. The Court found no basis for the petitioner's contention that he would be arrested for a non-bailable offence. Therefore, the provisions of Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. were not attracted. The petition was deemed misconceived. The Court did not decide on the merits of any potential service tax evasion, as the petition was dismissed on procedural grounds.
Facts
The petitioner, K. Ranganath Adiga, proprietor of Lion Security Services, filed a criminal petition under Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. seeking anticipatory bail. This was in response to a summons dated 15.11.2017 issued by the Superintendent, Anti-Evasion Unit-V, GST West Commissionerate, Bangalore. The summons required the petitioner to appear in person with specific documents related to service tax matters for the period 2012-13 to 2017-18. The petitioner apprehended arrest in a non-bailable offence due to the issuance of this summons. The respondents are the Principal Commissioner of Central Tax and other related GST authorities.
Key Issues
1. Whether the apprehension of arrest in a non-bailable offence is a prerequisite for maintaining a petition under Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. (This is framed as a question of law, turning on the interpretation of Section 438 Cr.P.C.). Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner contended that the summons issued by the GST authorities, which warned of consequences under Sections 174 & 175 of the Indian Penal Code for non-compliance, created a reasonable apprehension of arrest in a non-bailable offence, thus attracting Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. Revenue's Argument: The respondents did not explicitly record arguments in the judgment. However, the court's reasoning implies that the summons was for inquiry and document production, not an indication of impending arrest for a non-bailable offence.
Sections Cited
Section 438 Cr.P.C., Section 174 IPC, Section 175 IPC, Section 14 Central Excise Act, 1944, Section 83 Finance Act, 1994
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU
DATED THIS THE 8TH DAY OF JUNE 2018
BEFORE
THE HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE JOHN MICHAEL CUNHA
CRIMINAL PETITION NO.9858 OF 2017
BETWEEN:-
K.RANGANATH ADIGA S/O LATE SEETHARAMA ADIGA PROPRIETOR, LION SECURITY SERVICES 1ST FLOOR, B.K.MARIYAPPA CHARITIES 1ST CROSS, CHAMARAJAPET BANGALORE-560 018
... PETITIONER
(BY SRI DAYANAND HIREMATH, ADVOCATE)
AND
THE PRINCIPAL COMMISSIONER OF CENTRAL TAX, BANGALORE WEST COMMISSIONERATE, 1ST FLOOR TTMC BMTC BUILDING, BANASHANKARI BANGALORE-560 070
THE COMMISSIONER OF SERVICE TAX SERVICE TAX COMMISSIONERATE TTMC-BMTC BUILDING, DOMLUR BANGALORE-560 001
THE JOINT COMMISSIONER OF SERVICE TAX SERVICE TAX COMMISSIONERATE
2 TTMC-BMTC BUILDING, DOMLUR BANGALORE-560 001 ... RESPONDENTS
(BY SRI JEEVAN J. NEERALAGI, ADVOCATE)
THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S.438 CR.P.C PRAYING TO ENLARGE THE PETITIONER ON BAIL IN THE EVENT OF HIS ARREST BY THE RESPONDENTS AND HIS SUBORDINATE OFFICERS IN NON COMPLIANCE WITH SUMMONS DATED 15.11.2017 VIDE ANNEXURE-B, ISSUE BY SUPERINTENDENT, ANTI-EVASION UNIT, GST WEST COMMISSI
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