2019 (3) TMI 68 - HC - GST

Attachment of Bank accounts of petitioner - section 83 of the Central Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017 - case of petitioner is that it is difficult for the petitioner company to manage its day-to-day affairs and that in view of the property which has been offered by way of security which is unencumbered and the value of the property is ₹ 2.75 crore, the attachment over the bank accounts may be released - Held that - By way of interim arrangement, the respondent No.1 is directed to release the attachment over the bank accounts of the petitioner referred to hereinabove, subject to Shri Ashwinkumar Jayantibhai Patel and Shri Jashvantkumar Jayantibhai Patel, father and uncle of Mitesh Ashwinkumar Patel, one of the Directors of the company, permitting attachment of the property described hereinabove for release of the bank accounts - To secure the interest of the revenue, the petitioner shall also maintain an amount of ₹ 50,00,000/- in its Current Account No.916020018310340 maintained with the Axis Bank Limited, Asarwa Branch, Ahmedabad. Stand over to 22nd February, 2019.

Summary

Issues: Attachment of bank accounts under section 83 of the Central Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017; Offer of property by relatives for release of attachment; Management of day-to-day affairs by petitioner company; Direction to maintain amount in bank accounts for release of attachment.

Analysis:
1. The judgment pertains to the attachment of the petitioner company's bank accounts by the respondent under section 83 of the Central Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017. The attachment was made through an order passed in FORM GST DRC-22. The bank accounts affected were the cash credit account and current account maintained with Axis Bank Ltd., Asarwa Branch, Ahmedabad. The petitioners sought relief from this attachment to manage their day-to-day affairs effectively.

2. The petitioners, represented by Senior Advocate Mr. N.D. Nanavaty, presented an affidavit-in-rejoinder offering property owned by relatives as security for the release of the bank accounts. The property, worth &8377; 2.75 crore, was jointly owned by Patel Jashvantkumar Jayantibhai and Patel Ashwinkumar Jayantibhai. Both individuals expressed readiness to offer the property for attachment to secure the interest of the Government revenue. This offer was supported by detailed affidavits and annexures.

3. The court considered the offer of property made by the relatives of the petitioner company's directors as a viable solution for releasing the bank accounts. The unencumbered property valued at &8377; 2.75 crore was deemed suitable for securing the revenue interests. The learned counsel argued that the attachment was hindering the company's operations, and the property offer should warrant the release of the bank accounts.

4. On the other side, the respondents, represented by Senior Standing Counsel Mr. Ankit Shah, proposed that if the court accepted the property offer for releasing the bank accounts, the petitioner should maintain a certain amount in the accounts as directed by the court. This proposal aimed to ensure the continued security of the revenue interest while facilitating the release of the bank accounts.

5. Consequently, the court issued an interim order directing the respondent to release the attachment over the petitioner's bank accounts subject to the property offer made by Patel Jashvantkumar Jayantibhai and Patel Ashwinkumar Jayantibhai. The directors' relatives were required to file an undertaking regarding the property within a week. Additionally, the petitioner was instructed to maintain &8377; 50,00,000 in its current account at Axis Bank Ltd., Asarwa Branch, Ahmedabad, to secure the revenue interest. The matter was adjourned to 22nd February 2019 for further proceedings.