Rakesh Kumar And Sons vs. Assistant Commissioner Sector - 2 State Tax Bulandshahar And Another

Facts

The petitioner, Rakesh Kumar And Sons, is challenging an order dated December 20, 2023, passed by the Assistant Commissioner, Sector-2, State Tax, Bulandshahar, under Section 73 of the Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017. This order created a demand for the period July 2017 to March 2018. The petitioner contends that the notices and orders were uploaded on the GST portal under the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab, not the 'Due Notices and Orders' tab, making them unaware of the proceedings and unable to respond within the limitation period. The Department, represented by the Assistant Commissioner, did not dispute these contentions regarding the portal upload location. The case relies on a previous judgment in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. v. State of U.P. & 2 others.

Held

The Court held that the petitioner was entitled to the benefit of doubt regarding the proper communication of notices and orders. The Court found no material to reject the petitioner's contention that the impugned order was not reflecting under the 'View Notices and Orders' tab. Citing the precedent set in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. v. State of U.P. & 2 others, the Court observed that the issue of proper communication was central and that the petitioner could not be blamed for the portal's alleged shortcomings. The Court noted that the disputed amount was already deposited, thus no outstanding demand existed. Consequently, the Court quashed the impugned order dated December 20, 2023. The Assessing Officer was directed to issue a fresh notice to the petitioner with at least 15 days' clear notice, and further proceedings would be based on this fresh notice. The Court found no useful purpose in keeping the petition pending or relegating the petitioner to statutory remedies.

Key Issues

1. Whether the uploading of notices and orders on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab of the GST portal, instead of the 'Due Notices and Orders' tab, constitutes proper communication to the assessee, thereby impacting the limitation period for response and remedy? Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner argued that uploading notices and orders under the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab, as evidenced by Annexure-4, meant they were unaware of the proceedings. This lack of proper communication prevented them from appearing before the authority or challenging the impugned orders within the statutory limitation period. They relied on the High Court's decision in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. v. State of U.P. & 2 others and M/s Mohini Traders Vs. State of U.P. and Another. Respondent's Argument: The Department, through the Assistant Commissioner, did not dispute the factual contention regarding the tab where notices and orders were uploaded. The counsel for the Department stated that the assessing officer has no option to choose the tab for uploading and that any issue with the portal's functionality would need to be addressed by the GST Network.