Khadija Hassan vs. Union Of INDIA And 4 Others

Facts

The petitioner, Khadija Hassan, filed a writ petition challenging an order dated 18.03.2024 passed by the Deputy Commissioner, Commercial Tax, Moradabad, under Section 73 of the Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017, which created a demand against her. The petitioner contended that the notices and the impugned order were uploaded on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab of the GST portal, not the 'Due Notices and Orders' tab. Consequently, she claimed to be unaware of the proceedings and unable to respond within the limitation period. The respondent revenue department did not dispute these contentions regarding the uploading of notices and orders, acknowledging that the issue was covered by a previous judgment.

Held

The Court allowed the writ petition, quashing and setting aside the impugned order dated 18.03.2024 passed by the Deputy Commissioner, Commercial Tax. The Court relied on the precedent set in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. v. State of U.P. & 2 others, where a similar issue of notices and orders being uploaded on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab, leading to the assessee's lack of awareness and inability to respond within the limitation period, was considered. The Court found that the respondent revenue department did not dispute these facts. The ratio decidendi is that improper uploading of statutory notices and orders on the GST portal, which prevents the assessee from having due notice and an opportunity to respond, warrants relief. The Court directed the Assessing Officer to issue a fresh notice to the petitioner with at least 15 days' clear notice, in accordance with law, and to proceed further based on that notice.

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 challenging the order, under Section 73 of the Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017? Petitioner's Contention: The petitioner argued that the uploading of notices and orders on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab rendered her unaware of the proceedings, preventing her from appearing before the authority or questioning the order within the prescribed limitation period. She relied on the High Court's decision in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. v. State of U.P. & 2 others. Respondent's Contention: The respondent revenue department, based on the material on record, did not dispute the petitioner's contentions regarding the uploading of notices and orders on the 'Additional Notices and Orders' tab. They acknowledged that the issue was covered by the judgment in Ola Fleet Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (supra).