M/S Globe Panel Industries (INDIA) PVT. LTD. vs. State Of U.P. And 2 Others

Held

The Court held that the proper course for the petitioner was to submit a reply before the concerned authority. The Court found no good reason to interfere in the matter at the present stage. Therefore, the writ petition was dismissed. The dismissal was made with the liberty to the petitioner to submit a reply before the authority concerned. The Court did not decide on the merits of the notice itself, but rather on the procedural stage of the petition. The ratio decidendi is that a writ petition challenging a show-cause notice or a preliminary order under GST law is generally not maintainable at that stage, and the assessee should first exhaust the statutory remedy of responding to the notice and participating in the proceedings before the authority.

Facts

The petitioner, M/s Globe Panel Industries (India) Pvt. Ltd., filed a writ petition before the Allahabad High Court challenging a notice dated 08.07.2020 issued by the Assistant Commissioner, Mobile Squad, Commercial Tax, Sitapur. The notice was issued under Section 129 of the Goods and Services Tax Act. The specific tax period and the amount in dispute are not recorded in the judgment. The procedural history leading to the issuance of the notice is not detailed.

Key Issues

1. Whether the High Court should interfere at this stage by quashing the notice dated 08.07.2020 issued under Section 129 of the Goods and Services Tax Act, before the petitioner submits a reply to the authority concerned? Petitioner's contention: The petitioner sought to quash the notice issued by the Assistant Commissioner, Mobile Squad, Commercial Tax, Sitapur. The specific grounds for challenging the notice were not detailed in the judgment. Respondent's contention: The respondent, State of U.P. and 2 others, did not explicitly record any arguments in the judgment. However, the Court's observation implies that the proper course of action was for the petitioner to respond to the notice.