M/S Monolith Resorts Private Limited vs. The Commissioner
Held
The Court held that the show-cause notice issued by the State Tax Officer was in violation of Section 75(4) of the Uttarakhand Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, as the date of hearing was fixed before the date for submission of the reply. The Court found the issue to be identical to that decided in Writ Petition (M/B) No.709 of 2026. Consequently, the assessment order dated 31.12.2025 was set aside. The matter was remitted back to the Adjudicating Officer to proceed from the stage of the show-cause notice. The petitioner was to be granted an opportunity to file their reply, and thereafter, a fresh date for personal hearing was to be fixed. The Adjudicating Officer was directed to pass a fresh order within six weeks. The ratio decidendi is that a show-cause notice must provide a genuine opportunity to be heard, which includes allowing sufficient time for a reply before the hearing date.
Facts
M/s Monolith Resorts Pvt. Ltd. (the petitioner) challenged an order dated 31.12.2025, passed by the State Tax Officer, State Goods and Services Tax, Nainital (respondent no.2) under Section 73 of the Uttarakhand Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, for the assessment year 2021-22. The petitioner contended that the show-cause notice was issued in violation of Section 75(4) of the Act, as the date of hearing indicated in the notice was prior to the date for submission of the reply. The petitioner also submitted that an identical issue had been decided by the High Court in a previous writ petition. The Standing Counsel for the State conceded that the issue was similar to the one decided in the prior case.
Key Issues
1. Whether the show-cause notice issued by the State Tax Officer, Nainital, was in violation of Section 75(4) of the Uttarakhand Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, by fixing the date of hearing before the date for submission of the reply to the notice? Petitioner's contention: The petitioner argued that the notice was procedurally flawed and violated Section 75(4) of the Act, which mandates that an opportunity of being heard must be granted. They contended that a hearing date preceding the deadline for submitting a reply effectively denies the opportunity to be heard. The petitioner relied on a previous judgment of the High Court in Writ Petition (M/B) No.709 of 2026, which dealt with an identical issue. Revenue's contention: The Standing Counsel for the State conceded that the issue was identical to the one decided in the previously cited writ petition, implying an acceptance of the petitioner's procedural challenge.
Sections Cited
Section 73, Section 75(4)
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
SL. No Date Office Notes, reports, orders or proceedings or directions and Registrar’s order with Signatures UKHC010093512026
2026:UHC:9584-DB COURT’S OR JUDGES’S ORDERS
2026
WPMB No. 437 of 2026 M/s Monolith Resorts Pvt. Ltd.
...........Petitioner
Vs. The Commissioner & another
.........Respondents Hon’ble Manoj Kumar Tiwari, A.C.J. Hon’ble Subhash Upadhyay, J.
Mr. Tarun Pande and Mr. Ashish Agarwal, learned counsel for the petitioner.
Ms. Puja Banga, learned Standing Counsel for the State- respondents through video conferencing.
Petitioner has challenged order dated 31.12.2025, passed by respondent no.2- State Tax Officer, State Goods and Services Tax, Nainital under Section 73 of the Uttarakhand Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (for short “the Act”) for assessment year 2021-22. 4. It is contended that date of hearing indicated in the show-cause notice is before the date of submission of reply to the notice. Thus, it is contended that the notice was issued in violation of Section 75(4) of the Act.
Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that identical issue was decided by this Court v
The judgment continues below.
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