M/S Krishna Enterprises vs. The State Of Bihar

Facts

M/s Krishna Enterprises, a proprietorship firm, filed a writ petition before the Patna High Court challenging an assessment order dated 04.05.2024. The petitioner contended that the assessment order was passed without affording them a personal hearing, which is a mandatory requirement under Section 75(4) of the GST enactments. The respondents are the State of Bihar and various tax authorities. The petition was filed under the Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.19382 of 2024.

Held

The Court held that the assessment order dated 04.05.2024 was passed in violation of the statutory mandate for a notice of personal hearing under Section 75(4) of the GST enactments. Consequently, the impugned order was set aside. The matter was remitted back to the Assessing Officer. The petitioner was directed to appear before the Assessing Officer on 07.01.2025. If the petitioner appears on the notified date or an adjourned date, the Assessing Officer is to pass fresh orders after hearing the assessee within three months from the date of the judgment or within the remaining limitation period, whichever is later. The ratio decidendi is that a statutory requirement of a personal hearing must be strictly adhered to, and non-compliance vitiates the order.

Key Issues

1. Whether the assessment order dated 04.05.2024 is liable to be set aside for violation of the statutory mandate of personal hearing under Section 75(4) of the GST enactments? Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner argued that the assessment order was passed without granting them a personal hearing, thereby violating the statutory mandate under Section 75(4) of the GST enactments. They sought to have the order set aside on this ground. Revenue's Argument: The judgment does not record any specific arguments made by the revenue or state respondents regarding the violation of personal hearing. However, the court's decision implies that the revenue's position was not upheld on this point.