2025 (4) TMI 627 - HC - GST

Declination to grant any interim order - HELD THAT - It is for the appellant to agitate the claims in the pending writ petition. Two issues which arise out of the matter is detention of the vehicles and the goods. Vehicles is the TATA truck which was carrying the goods which are Areca-nuts measuring a quantity of 17760 kg. If the vehicle continues to be under detention the vehicle will get deteriorated and it will ultimately be reduced to a scrap. Therefore we direct the respondent authorities to release the vehicle in question subject to appellant paying a sum of Rs.1, 00, 000/- to the appropriate authority of the respondent and the vehicle should be released with three days from the date of payment. So far as the goods are concerned since they are stated to be Areca-nuts they have self-life. If the Areca-nuts which are packed in 222 bags of 80 kg. which will ultimately be unfit for human consumption and destruction has to be ordered. The department is directed to sell the Arec-anuts at the best possible price which is realisable within 15 days from receipt of server copy of the order and retain the sale proceeds in a separate account subject to the outcome of the writ petition. It will be well-open to the appellant to participate in the auction sale proceeding. Appeal disposed off.

Summary

The Calcutta High Court, presided over by Chief Justice T. S. Sivagnanam and Justice Chaitali Chatterjee (Das), reviewed an intra-court appeal concerning the detention of a vehicle and goods under the WBGST Act, 2017 and CGST Act, 2017. The appeal arose from an order where the Single Bench declined to grant an interim order but directed affidavits to be filed. During the appeal, the appellant filed CAN/3/2025 to introduce a show-cause notice issued under section 129(1) of the aforementioned Acts, to which a reply was submitted.Subsequently, an order under section 129(3) was issued on December 6, 2024, and provided to the appellant's counsel. The court addressed two key issues: the detention of a TATA truck carrying 17,760 kg of Areca-nuts and the potential spoilage of the goods. The court ordered the release of the vehicle upon payment of Rs.1,00,000/- to the respondent authority, to be executed within three days of payment, to prevent deterioration of the vehicle.Regarding the Areca-nuts, the court noted their limited shelf-life and ordered their sale at the best possible price within 15 days, with proceeds held in a separate account pending the writ petition's outcome. The appellant is permitted to participate in the auction sale. The court granted the appellant leave to file a separate application in the pending writ petition to address subsequent events and additional grounds. The appeal and associated applications were disposed of with these directions. Urgent certified copies of the order are to be provided upon request, subject to formalities.