Order dated: 26 September 2022

Facts 

• The petitioner, Umar Iron Mart, engaged is in the business of trading in Iron Tubes and Iron Sheets. The petitioner purchases and sell the goods from both within and outside the State of Andhra Pradesh. 
• The Assistant Commissioner conducted inspection of the business premises of the petitioner and seized 36 slips which are not accounted. Turnover from the same is also not reported to GSTR-3B returns. 
• The authority issued a show cause notice imposing Tax, penalty and interest under CGST and SGST. It is mentioned that if the petitioner pays tax with interest within 30 days from the date of communication of the said order, penalty will be reduced by 50% as per Section 74(11) of the CGST and SGST Acts, 2017. 
• The petitioner alleged that the material seized from the business premises was never supplied to him along with the show cause notice and had it been supplied to him along with the show cause notice he would have filed a suitable reply. Hence the order under challenge imposing arbitrary amounts is in violation of the principles of natural justice. 

Issue 

• Whether the impugned order under challenge is liable to be set-aside on the ground that it was issued without following the principles of natural justice?

Order 

• The Hon’ble High Court observed that the material was seized from the business premises of the petitioner was made the basis to issue the show-cause notice. Even according to the reply submitted by the Petitioner, he never raised his little finger that he has no knowledge whatsoever about the contents of the slip. 
• Considering the decision made by the Hon'ble Apex Court in Chand Ratan v. Durga Prasad and others AIR 2003 SC 2736, petitioner has an alternative remedy of appeal under Section 107 of the GST Act and as the petitioner failed to succeed in establishing that there has been violation of the principles of natural justice.
• It is open to the petitioner to avail the remedy available under law, in which event the period of pendency of Writ Petition before this Court be given set-off while calculating the period of limitation. 
• The Writ Petition is dismissed.