2021 (3) TMI 965 - HC - GST

Principles of natural justice - assessment order - personal hearing has not been granted to the petitioner prior to passing of the impugned orders - Section 74(5) of the TNGST Act - HELD THAT - The impugned orders are set aside on the ground of violation of principles of natural justice. Let the petitioner appear before the Assessing Authority on Wednesday, the 24th of March, 2021 along with materials, if any, in support of its stand without expecting any further notice in this regard. The Assessing Officer shall, after hearing the petitioner and considering the materials, if any circulated, pass orders of assessment de novo within a period of six (6) weeks thereafter.

Summary

Issues: Challenge to four assessment orders under the TNGST Act for the periods 2017-18 to 2020-21 without granting a personal hearing to the petitioner.

In this judgment, the Honorable Dr. Justice Anita Sumanth addressed the challenge posed by the petitioner against four assessment orders dated 09.02.2021 under the Tamil Nadu Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017. The petitioner contended that personal hearing was not granted prior to the issuance of the impugned orders, which is a violation of Section 74(5) of the TNGST Act. This section mandates that a personal hearing must be provided when a specific request is made or when the assessing officer anticipates an adverse decision against the assessee. The court referred to a previous order dated 19.01.2021 in a similar case and set aside the impugned orders due to the violation of principles of natural justice.

The court directed the petitioner to appear before the Assessing Authority on a specified date along with any supporting materials without expecting further notice. The Assessing Officer was instructed to conduct a fresh assessment after hearing the petitioner and considering the submitted materials within six weeks. The Writ Petitions were disposed of in these terms without any costs, and the connected Miscellaneous Petitions were closed.