Gujarat High Court Quashes ₹43.43 Crore GST Demand Against Amul

The Gujarat High Court has recently quashed an IGST demand of ₹43.43 crore against Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Limited, popularly known as Amul. The court held that failure to allocate common expenses to branches through cross-charging does not, by itself, establish fraud or suppression of facts to evade GST.A Division Bench of Justice A.S. Supehia and Justice Vaibhavi D. Nanavati ruled that the tax authorities had failed to establish the conditions required to invoke Section...

Time Spent In Writ Petition Not Automatically Excluded From GST Appeal Limitation: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has clarified that the time spent pursuing a writ petition cannot be automatically excluded while computing the limitation period for filing a statutory appeal against a GST adjudication order.The Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Bharat Parashar observed that if an assessee files an application under Section 14 of the Limitation Act, 1963, seeking exclusion of the period during which the writ petition remained pending, the Appellate Authority must consider the...

Calcutta High Court Quashes ₹25.23 Lakh GST Penalty, Orders Release Of Two Detained Trucks

The Calcutta High Court on 14 October quashed GST penalty orders totalling Rs. 25.23 lakh imposed on two detained trucks, holding that the authorities passed the orders beyond the statutory deadline under Section 129(3) of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017. A Single-Judge Bench of Justice Aryak Dutt allowed a petition filed by truck owner Permender Singh, holding that the penalty orders were barred by limitation and passed without jurisdiction. He also held: “An appeal under...

Rajasthan High Court Orders Release Of ₹47.45 Lakh Cash Seized Over Alleged Unaccounted Sales

The Rajasthan High Court on 14 September directed the GST department to release Rs. 47.45 lakh seized during a search of residential premises, along with applicable interest. A Division Bench comprising Justices Arun Monga and Ashutosh Kumar held that Section 67(2) of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act does not authorise the seizure of cash merely on suspicion that it represents proceeds from unaccounted sales. It observed: “...the jurisdictional condition of 'reasons to believe'...

Can Companies In Liquidation Seek Exemption From GST Pre-Deposit To File Appeals? Delhi High Court To Examine

The Delhi High Court will examine whether companies undergoing liquidation can seek exemption from the mandatory pre-deposit requirement under Section 107(6) of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act. The issue is whether the requirement can be relaxed in view of the statutory distribution mechanism under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Bharat Parashar requested Additional Solicitor General of India Raghavendra Shankar to assist...

Delhi High Court Allows GST Appeal Without Full Pre-Deposit Over Overlapping Demands

The Delhi High Court has permitted a taxpayer to approach the appellate authority with an application seeking exemption from the statutory pre-deposit requirement, to the extent the GST demand is alleged to overlap with an earlier demand.The division bench of Justices Anil Khetarpal and Bharat Parashar was hearing a plea by M/s Forever Exim India Private Limited seeking restoration of its writ petition challenging a GST order dated August 30, 2024.Petitioner submitted that parallel proceedings...

Bombay High Court Denies Anticipatory Bail To Tax Consultant Accused Of Misusing ₹45 Lakh Meant For GST Payment

The Bombay High Court has refused anticipatory bail to a tax consultant accused of retaining over ₹45 lakh given to him by a client for GST payments and allegedly preparing fake GST bills to show that the amount had been deposited with the government.Justice Madhav J. Jamdar was hearing an anticipatory bail application filed by Rakesh Rajendra Thakur, who was booked under Sections 316(2) and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, for criminal breach of trust and cheating.The court...

GST Appeals Can't Be Dismissed Without Hearing Taxpayer On Pre-Deposit Shortfall: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court on 12 October held that a GST appeal cannot be dismissed for a shortfall in mandatory pre-deposit without first giving the taxpayer notice or an opportunity to rectify the defect. A Division Bench of Justices M.S. Karnik and Sandesh D. Patil set aside the rejection of an appeal filed by Bhagyoday Agro Industries against a GST demand of approximately Rs. 14.77 crore. They observed: “The Appellate Authority ought to have applied the well settled principle that when an...

GST Notices Not Invalid Without Visible Digital Signature If Authenticated On Portal: Telangana High Court

The Telangana High Court has recently held that GST show-cause notices and adjudication orders cannot be invalidated merely because downloaded PDF copies do not display a visible digital signature. This is provided they have been electronically authenticated by the proper officer and uploaded on the GST common portal.“The case of the petitioners based upon the contention that the PDF format does not contain the visible digital signature of the proper officer is untenable in law,” the Full Bench...

GST Circular Requiring Physical Service Of Notices After Registration Cancellation Is 'Founded On Sound Common Sense': Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has set aside an ex parte adjudication order passed under Section 74 of the UP GST Act, 2017 where the show-cause notice had been served on the dealer only through the Common Portal, almost five years after his registration had already been cancelled. The Court noted that the Commissioner of Commercial Tax, U.P. had, by Circular dated May 07, 2025, issued binding instructions to subordinate authorities to serve physical notice on noticees facing adjudication...

GST | Refusal Of Cross-Examination For A Wrong Reason Does Not Mean It Had To Be Granted: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has held that GST authorities cannot automatically be required to allow cross-examination merely because the reason given for denying such a request is legally unsustainable. The need for cross-examination must be assessed on the facts of each case. The bench of Justice Saumitra Dayal Singh and Justice Swarupama Chaturvedi held “While we accept the contention of learned counsel for the petitioner, that the reasoning offered by the adjudicating authority to...

Madras High Court Sets Aside ₹5.50 Crore GST Demand Based On Projected Revenue From Unbuilt Construction

The Madras High Court has set aside a ₹5.50 crore GST demand against Shree Velu Builders Private Limited, holding that tax cannot be levied on projected revenue from two building blocks merely because their plans had been approved. The court noted that construction had not commenced in either block.Justice Krishnan Ramasamy remanded the matter to the State Tax Officer for fresh consideration, subject to the company depositing ₹50 lakh within four weeks.The case arose from an order passed against...