M/S Bsh Household Appliances Manufacturing Private Limited vs. The State Of Bihar

Held

The High Court, considering the submissions of both parties and the nature of the dispute, found it expedient to dispose of the writ application. The Court directed that the petitioner be granted liberty to file an appeal before the appellate authority within a period of three weeks from the date of the order. It was further clarified that if the appeal is filed within the stipulated period, the appellate authority shall decide the same on its merits, without considering any delay in filing the appeal. Consequently, the writ petition was disposed of with these observations and directions. The Court did not decide on the merits of the tax assessment itself, but rather on the procedural aspect of availing the appellate remedy.

Facts

The petitioner, M/s BSH Household Appliances Manufacturing Private Limited, filed a writ petition before the Patna High Court challenging an order dated 31.12.2025 passed by the Assistant Commissioner of State Tax, Patna City. This order, passed under Section 73(9) of the CGST/BGST Act, 2017, directed the petitioner to pay Rs. 1,54,88,697.76 towards tax, along with interest and penalty, totaling Rs. 2,68,10,506.02. The petitioner contended that the assessment was made without an effective personal hearing and without considering the facts and law. The revenue argued that the petitioner had not availed the statutory remedy of appeal under Section 107 of the GST Act before approaching the High Court.

Key Issues

1. Whether the Assistant Commissioner of State Tax, Patna City, erred in passing an order under Section 73(9) of the CGST/BGST Act, 2017, without providing an effective personal hearing to the petitioner and without properly considering the facts and law relevant to the tax liability. Petitioner's contention: The petitioner argued that the adjudicatory authority (Assistant Commissioner) assessed the tax liability without affording an effective personal hearing and failed to take into account relevant questions of fact and law. Revenue's contention: The revenue contended that the petitioner directly approached the High Court by filing the writ application without first availing the remedy of appeal provided under Section 107 of the GST Act.