Madras HC Allows Contestation of Three Missed GST Personal Hearing Notices with 10% ECR Pre-deposit

When the GST ( Goods and Services Tax ) personal hearing notice was not noticed 3 times, the Madras High Court granted a chance to challenge a 10% pre-deposit from the Electronic Cash Register ( ECR ).

The taxpayer, a small-time operator, lost to notice the show cause notices ( ASMT 10 dated 17.10.2022, DRC 01A dated 11.07.2023, and DRC 01 dated 19.08.2023 ) published on the GST common portal.

It was furnished that the taxpayer did not notice the three personal hearing notices dated 26.09.2023, 30.10.2023, and 16.11.2023 and presented the taxpayer may be given one chance to explain the case.

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The respondent, representing the GST department, claimed that the writ petition was limited to time and is to be dismissed based on the precedent set by the Supreme Court in Assistant Commissioner ( CT ) LTU, Kakinada vs. Glaxo Smith Kline Consumer Health Care Limited.

They argued that the appellate remedy was indeed limited to time u/s 107 of the TNGST Act, 2017, citing Singh Enterprises vs. Commissioner of Central Excise, Jamshedpur (2008) 3 SCC 70.

The bench of Justice C. Saravanan of the Madras High Court taking into account the submissions opined that the taxpayer might be provided partial relief via quashing the impugned GST order and remitting the matter back to the respondent to pass the new orders as per the taxpayer depositing the 10% disputed tax to the credit of the respondent via its electronic Cash Register.

The court asked that the order be quashed and considered an addendum to the show cause notices (SCN) that preceded the impugned order. It was directed to the taxpayer to file a response within 30 days of the deposit.

For the petitioner Mr.Raja.Karthikeyan has appeared and respondent Mr.R.Suresh Kumar Additional Government Pleader appeared.