M/S Shri Ram Traders vs. Union Of INDIA

Held

The Court held that if the petitioner's contention regarding non-service of the show cause notice is correct, they have the remedy of filing an appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals) under Section 107 of the MPGST Act. The Court expressed hope that if the issue of non-service is verified to be true upon appeal, the appellate authority would address it in accordance with the law. The Court directed that the period spent during the pendency of the writ petition would be excluded for computing the period of limitation for filing the appeal. The writ petition was disposed of with these directions.

Facts

The petitioner, M/s Shri Ram Traders, filed a writ petition before the Madhya Pradesh High Court challenging an order of assessment passed by the State Tax Officer, Morena, under Section 74 of the Madhya Pradesh Goods & Services Tax Act, 2017. The petitioner contended that the assessment order was made ex-parte as they were not served with a show cause notice. The respondents, Union of India and the State Tax Officer, were not represented before the Court. The High Court noted that an appeal against the assessment order lies before the Commissioner (Appeals) under Section 107 of the MPGST Act.

Key Issues

1. Whether the assessment order passed under Section 74 of the Madhya Pradesh Goods & Services Tax Act, 2017, is liable to be set aside on the ground that the petitioner was not served with a show cause notice, leading to an ex-parte assessment? The petitioner argued that the assessment order is bad in law because it was passed without providing them with an opportunity to be heard, specifically by failing to issue a show cause notice. They contended that this procedural lapse vitiates the entire assessment. The respondents did not present any arguments before the Court.