Chaitanya Ghosh vs. State Of West Bengal And Ors.

Held

The Court held that the writ petition challenging the show cause notice was filed at a premature stage and was therefore not maintainable. Regarding the second issue, the Court granted the petitioner liberty to challenge the order in original. The Court directed that if the petitioner files such a challenge within three weeks, limitation shall not be a ground for rejection. The appeal shall be admitted and decided in accordance with law, subject to the petitioner making the pre-deposit as prescribed by law. The Court did not expressly leave any issue undecided but disposed of the writ petition with liberty to file an appeal.

Facts

The petitioner, Sri Chaitanya Ghosh, filed a writ petition challenging a show cause notice dated May 27, 2025, issued by the revenue authorities. The petitioner had not yet replied to this notice. The petitioner also filed an application (IA No.: CAN 1 of 2026) challenging a communication dated June 10, 2026, of an order passed on December 19, 2025. The petitioner sought an extension of time to file an appeal against the order in original if the court was not inclined to interfere with the show cause notice. The High Court noted that the writ petition against the show cause notice was premature.

Key Issues

1. Whether the writ petition challenging the show cause notice dated May 27, 2025, is maintainable at this stage. The petitioner argued for maintainability, while the State respondents contended that the petition was premature. The CGST authorities did not record any specific arguments on this point. 2. Whether the petitioner should be granted an extension of time to file an appeal against the order in original dated December 19, 2025, if the writ petition is not entertained. The petitioner sought this extension, and the State respondents' stance on this specific request was not explicitly recorded, though they were represented. The CGST authorities also did not record specific arguments on this point.