Tvl. Karthik Traders vs. The Commercial Tax Officer

Facts

The petitioner, Tvl. Karthik Traders, represented by its Proprietor R. Karthikaichamy, filed a writ petition challenging an ex-parte order dated 08.05.2025, bearing reference GST DRC 07, issued by the respondent, The Commercial Tax Officer, Ramanathapuram Assessment Circle. The order pertains to the assessment year 2024-25. The petitioner contended that the order was passed without jurisdiction and in clear violation of statutory provisions. The appeal period for the impugned order had expired. The petitioner sought to quash the said order.

Held

The Court acknowledged that the petitioner had suffered an ex-parte order on 08.05.2025, and the appeal period had expired. Instead of deciding the merits of the petitioner's challenge to the order's jurisdiction and statutory compliance, the Court permitted the petitioner to file an appeal within thirty days from the date of receipt of a copy of the order. This permission was granted without reference to limitation, subject to the petitioner paying 10% of the disputed tax amount as a pre-deposit. The Court stipulated that if the pre-deposit was not remitted or the appeal was not filed within the specified thirty days, the benefit of this order would stand recalled automatically. The writ petition was disposed of with these directions.

Key Issues

1. Whether the impugned order dated 08.05.2025, bearing reference GST DRC 07, issued by the respondent is without jurisdiction and in violation of statutory provisions? The petitioner argued that the order was passed ex-parte and without jurisdiction, and in clear violation of statutory provisions. The petitioner sought to quash the order on these grounds. The respondent, represented by the Additional Government Pleader, did not present any specific arguments against the petitioner's claims as recorded in the judgment. The judgment does not record any specific arguments made by the respondent.