National Plastic Household Products PVT LTD vs. State Of West Bengal And Ors.

Facts

The appellant, National Plastic Household Products Private Limited, filed an intra-court appeal challenging an order dated July 19, 2023, passed in a writ petition. The original writ petition challenged an adjudication order dated May 4, 2023, issued under Section 74(9) of the WBGST Act, 2017. The primary ground for challenging the adjudication order was a violation of the principles of natural justice. The appellant contended that the summary of the show cause notice was uploaded on one portal, while the full show cause notice was on a different portal/tab, leading to the appellant's lack of awareness. The revenue did not dispute this fact and noted that no reply was filed to the show cause notice in Form GST DRC 01.

Held

The Court held that the principles of natural justice were indeed violated due to the improper service of the show cause notice, as the appellant was unaware of its contents. The Court acknowledged the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case, including the fact that over Rs. 82 lakhs had already been recovered from the appellant. Consequently, the Court decided to grant the appellant one more opportunity to submit their objections on merits. The adjudication order dated May 4, 2023, was treated as a show cause notice, and the appellant was directed to file their reply within three weeks of receiving the server copy of the order. The adjudicating authority was further directed to provide a personal hearing to the appellant and pass fresh orders on merits and in accordance with the law expeditiously.

Key Issues

1. Whether the adjudication order dated May 4, 2023, passed under Section 74(9) of the WBGST Act, 2017, is liable to be set aside on the ground of violation of the principles of natural justice, specifically concerning the proper service of the show cause notice? The appellant argued that the principles of natural justice were violated because the show cause notice was not properly served. They contended that the summary was uploaded on one portal, while the actual show cause notice was on a different portal/tab, making them unaware of its contents and thus unable to file a reply. The revenue, while not disputing the factual submission regarding the portal uploads, noted that no reply was filed to the show cause notice in Form GST DRC 01.