Author: admin_gst

Input tax credit notice quashed for non-consideration of taxpayer objections; fresh speaking order directed after reconsideration.
Case-Laws
GST
Failure to consider a taxpayer's reply to the pre-show cause intimation and supporting documents vitiated the subsequent DRC-01 show cause notice. The HC noted the admitted position that the objections filed against the DRC-01A notice were not examined before issuance of the notice denying input tax credit. In light of the State's statement that the materials would be considered afresh, the Court quashed the impugned notice and directed the competent authority to reconsider the objections and documents and pass a fresh speaking and reasoned order in accordance with law within the stipulated time.
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Natural justice in GST adjudication requires consideration of reply and personal hearing before adverse orders are passed.
Case-Laws
GST
HC held that where the taxpayer had filed a reply to the show-cause notice and had requested a personal hearing, the adjudicating authority was bound to consider the explanation, record reasons for rejecting it, and afford a hearing. An adjudication order proceeded on the mistaken assumption that no reply had been filed, and the rectification order also failed to show that the hearing request was addressed. The Court treated this as a failure of independent application of mind and a breach of natural justice, and quashed the orders passed under the GST provisions. The matter was remanded for fresh adjudication on merits after granting a reasonable opportunity of hearing and liberty to adduce evidence.
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Efficacious statutory appeal under GST bars writ review; petitioner may still file appeal within the court-granted time.
Case-Laws
GST
Where an efficacious statutory appeal exists under the GST framework, recourse to the appeal remedy must ordinarily precede invocation of Article 226. Applying the rule of exhaustion of statutory remedies as one of policy, convenience and discretion, the High Court found no special circumstance to depart from that principle and declined to examine the GST demand on merits. As the petitioner was still within the appeal period under Section 107, liberty was granted to file the appeal within seven days, and it was directed to be treated as within limitation subject to compliance with statutory requirements.
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Common portal notice after GST registration cancellation was insufficient; physical service and hearing were required before adjudication could proceed.
Case-Laws
GST
After cancellation of GST registration, an adjudication notice uploaded only on the common portal was not valid service because the taxpayer could no longer be expected to monitor the portal. Physical service was required under the service provisions, and its absence denied the opportunity to file a reply or objection and to be heard, breaching natural justice and the statutory hearing right. The HC set aside the adjudication order and remitted the matter for fresh decision after physical notice, supply of relied upon documents, and a proper hearing.
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Statutory remedy bars writ interference where GST search and stock discrepancy issues turn on disputed facts.
Case-Laws
GST
The High Court declined to entertain the writ petition under Article 226 because the challenge to the search authorization, stock discrepancy assessment, and penalty order involved disputed factual matters better examined under the GST statutory framework. Applying the rule that an aggrieved person should ordinarily pursue the remedy created by statute, the Court held that an effective appellate remedy was available and interference in writ jurisdiction was unwarranted. The petitioner was left to file an appeal and was granted liberty to raise all legal and factual grounds, including a request for condonation of delay for the period spent in prosecuting the writ petition.
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Tariff classification of polypropylene leno bags turns on textile character, and plastic sacks classification was upheld.
Case-Laws
GST
Polypropylene leno bags were held not classifiable as textile goods under Heading 6305 33 00 because the appellant failed to show that the plastic strips used in weaving satisfied the conditions for treatment as synthetic textile under Section XI Note 1(g) read with Heading 6305. The Court reiterated that there is no estoppel against claiming the correct tariff classification, but that principle does not relieve the importer of proving that the product answers the textile entry. Applying the common parlance test and relying on prior precedent, the Court found the goods were known in the market as plastic sacks, not textile sacks, and left their classification under Heading 3923 2900 undisturbed.
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Andhra govt clears over 800 acres for RIL’s Rs 1 lakh-cr AI data centre in Vizianagaram district
GST
Dated:- 20-5-2026
PTI
Amaravati, May 20 (PTI) The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday approved the allotment of over 800 acres of land in Vizianagaram district to Reliance Industries Ltd at a discounted rate of 25 percent for the establishment of a Giga Scale AI Data Centre (AIDC) with Cable Landing Station at an investment of over Rs 1 lakh crore.

IT Secretary Bhaskar Katamneni directed Andhra Pradesh Industrial and Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC) and Vizianagaram district administration to identify an additional acre of land suitable for the Cable Landing Station (CLS).

“The government accords approval for allo

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r provision for the project for a period of 20 years through the Water Resource Department, Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department and APIIC.

RIL will bear the cost for water provision while APIIC will also study a proposal on the development of a desalination plant under joint ownership between the company and the government.

Among fiscal incentives, the southern state approved the allotment of the 854 acres land for the data centre at a discount of 25 percent, requiring RIL to pay 75 percent land cost to APIIC as and when the land acquisition process is initiated.

Further, the TDP-led government sanctioned 100 percent exemption on stamp duty and registration charges along with a six percent capital sub

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BJD MP meets FM, seeks structured GST Council deliberations to include petrol, diesel under GST
GST
Dated:- 20-5-2026
PTI
New Delhi, May 20 (PTI) BJD MP Sasmit Patra on Wednesday met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and demanded initiation of structured deliberations on the inclusion of petrol and diesel under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) framework.

In his detailed representation to the FM, Patra emphasised that the constitutional framework under Article 279A(5) already envisages the eventual inclusion of petroleum products within GST through the recommendation of the GST Council.

He noted that while the matter had previously been deliberated upon in the GST Council following directions of the Kerala High Court, p

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ST Council can undertake a balanced, consultative and forward-looking deliberation on this important national issue in the larger interest of citizens, states, industry, agriculture and the Indian economy,” he said in his letter.

Patra said fuel prices directly impact inflation, transportation and logistics costs, agricultural input costs, MSME operating expenditure and household consumption patterns across the country.

He underlined that interstate disparities in VAT structures continue to dilute the objective of tax harmonisation and market integration envisioned under GST.

Drawing attention to Odisha's economic profile as a major mining, industrial and logistics-intensive state, the Rajya Sabha MP observed that calibrated GST

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Restoration of cancelled GST registration permitted after filing pending returns and compliance with tax obligations
Case-Laws
GST
Cancellation of GST registration for non-filing of returns was treated as remediable where the taxpayer had already filed the pending returns and paid the penalty amount. Relying on its earlier approach in similar matters, the HC permitted the taxpayer to seek restoration by filing an application within the time granted, and directed the authority to verify the application and consider restoration in accordance with law. The registration was to be restored upon such verification and compliance with the prescribed process.
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Retrospective GST registration cancellation requires stated grounds and reasons; unreasoned notice and order were quashed.
Case-Laws
GST
Retrospective cancellation of GST registration must be supported by specific contingencies, and both the show cause notice and the cancellation order must disclose the factual basis and reasons. Where the notice is silent on the grounds for retrospective action and the cancellation order is equally unreasoned, the proceedings are unsustainable for breach of the requirement of reasoned quasi-judicial action and fair hearing. Applying that principle, the High Court set aside the show cause notice, the order cancelling registration retrospectively, and the order rejecting revocation, while granting the authorities liberty to proceed afresh in accordance with law.
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Release of detained perishable goods turns on prima facie ownership and compliance with statutory payment requirements.
Case-Laws
GST
Perishable goods detained in transit were ordered to be released to the petitioner because the demand order disclosed no concrete or prima facie material negating the petitioner's ownership of the consignment. The Court held that release had to follow compliance with the statutory payment required from the owner under Section 129(1)(a) of the GST law, and that the revenue could not withhold release merely on a disputed ownership basis. It also clarified that, if the petitioner did not pursue the statutory appeal and the demand attained finality, the revenue remained free to proceed in accordance with law.
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Advance ruling jurisdiction is limited to applicant's own supplies, and prior adjudication barred reconsideration of related taxability issues.
Case-Laws
GST
An advance ruling under section 97(2) is confined to questions arising from a supply of goods or services undertaken by the applicant, so issues relating to amounts shared with facilitators as consideration for services rendered to the applicant fell outside that scope. The Authority also noted that the taxability of transactions between the society and its members had already been decided in prior adjudication proceedings, triggering the bar under section 98(2). As the primary questions were inadmissible on these grounds, the connected questions on classification and exemption could not be entertained, and no ruling was issued on mutuality or taxability.
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Bail condition requiring a security bond upheld as distinct from pre-deposit or bank guarantee, with review held impermissible.
Case-Laws
GST
A High Court considered a request to modify a bail condition requiring a security bond equal to the amount claimed. It held that the condition only required furnishing a security bond and did not require advance deposit of money or a bank guarantee, so the authorities cited by the applicant were inapplicable because the condition was materially different. The Court also held that it should not re-examine the issue after the same condition had already been challenged before the Supreme Court, and that withdrawing the condition would effectively amount to an impermissible review of the earlier bail order. The application was dismissed.
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Writ jurisdiction and statutory appeal remedy: challenge sent to GSTAT with mandatory pre-deposit and notified timeline.
Case-Laws
GST
Writ jurisdiction may be invoked when the statutory appellate forum is not constituted or functional, because an aggrieved person cannot be left remediless. Once the GSTAT became functional and the appeal-filing timeline was notified, the writ court declined to retain the challenge and relegated the petitioner to the statutory appellate remedy. The Court held that the absence of a functional tribunal did not waive the mandatory pre-deposit under Section 112(8); the petitioner was required to file the appeal before GSTAT within the notified period after making the prescribed deposit. The merits of the first appellate order were not examined.
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Healthcare composite supply exemption applies to inpatient treatment bundles, while outpatient medicines and excess room rent remain taxable.
Case-Laws
GST
Inpatient treatment supplies, including medicines, consumables, room accommodation within the prescribed limit, nursing care and other ancillary elements, were held to form a naturally bundled composite supply of healthcare service. As the principal supply is healthcare service by a clinical establishment in a recognised system of medicine, the inpatient bundle falls within Entry No. 74 of Notification No. 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate) and is exempt, subject to the specific exclusion for room rent. Medicines or other goods supplied to outpatients were held to be separate taxable supplies because they are not supplied as part of a continuous, hospital-controlled treatment bundle. Non-ICU room rent exceeding the notified threshold was also held outside the exemption and liable to GST.
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Filing of Annexure-B for Refund Applications involving Accumulated ITC using the offline utility in GST portal
GST
Dated:- 19-5-2026

Until now, while filing refund applications under specific categories involving accumulated Input Tax Credit (ITC), taxpayers were uploading Annexure-B in a PDF format, in terms of extant guidelines. In order to further automate the refund filing process and enable system-based verification of invoices and documents, a standardized Annexure-B Offline Utility has now been deployed on the portal. In order to bring uniformity, taxpayers are required to furnish Annexure-B through this prescribed utility going forward.

Taxpayers are advised to carefully note the following instructions while filing refund applications under the below mentioned refund categories where refund is claimed on account of accumulated Input Tax Credit (ITC).

1. Introduction of Annexure-B in Offline Utility for following categories

Annexure-B is required to be fur

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h respect to the HSN/SAC code and category of input supply reported in that line item, including the corresponding taxable value, tax amount, and whether such ITC is blocked under section 17(5) of the CGST Act or otherwise. A maximum of 10,000 entries can be made in one offline utility file. If there are more than 10,000 entries, the user should use multiple offline utility files to enter the data.

3. Structure of Annexure-B Offline Utility

The utility contains the following two tables:

• Table 1 – Reversal Details

• Table 2 – HSN/SAC-wise Inward Invoice Details for which ITC has been claimed in GSTR-3B

4. Reporting of Invoices with Multiple Categories / HSN-SAC Codes

In cases where a single invoice includes: Multiple categories of supplies such as Inputs, Input Services, and Capital Goods, and/or Multiple HSN/SAC codes

• Taxpayers are required to split the invoice into separate line items in the offline utility.

• Ea

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able:

• Reversals made under Rules 38, 42, 43 of the CGST Rules and section 17(5) shall be reported as per the corresponding month's GSTR-3B.

• Other ITC reversals reflected in Table 4(B)(2) of GSTR-3B shall also be reported accordingly.

• In cases where multiple offline utility files are used, reversal amounts shall be entered only in the final utility file, with all previous utility files reflecting reversal amounts as zero. The system recalculates the consolidated Net ITC after upload of all JSON files. Taxpayers are advised to review the consolidated summary carefully prior to submission.

7. Uploading Annexure-B JSON File

Upon generation of the Annexure-B JSON file, the taxpayer shall upload the same on the RFD-01 screen by clicking on the hyperlink “Click to upload the Statement of invoices (Unutilized ITC)” and proceed further for validation.

8. Post-Upload Validation and Reports

• Uploaded invoices shall be valida

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d in respect of the Annexure B offline utility, namely :

• Copy-paste functionality has been enabled for dropdown values in the offline utility. While using this feature, users must ensure that the value that user if copying and pasting must match with the exact dropdown value. Any deviation, including leading or trailing spaces, may result in validation errors. Additionally, users should not paste data into any frozen/protected fields, as this may lead to processing or validation issues.

• Before using the newly downloaded utility, users should ensure that any previous version of the Annexure B Offline Utility is completely closed. Keeping an older version open simultaneously may cause issues with the enhanced copy-paste functionality.

• Users are advised to avoid using unnecessary spaces while entering or copy-pasting data (for example, extra spaces after supplier name or in other fields), as such inconsistencies may result in errors during JSON

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Prolonged incarceration justified regular bail where trial was slow and substantial prosecution evidence remained incomplete.
Case-Laws
GST
Despite the seriousness of the allegations, regular bail was granted because the petitioner had remained in custody for more than five years and nine months while the trial progressed slowly and substantial prosecution evidence still remained. The Court applied the principle that an accused cannot be kept in custody indefinitely before guilt is proved, and held that prolonged incarceration, together with incomplete examination of witnesses, justified release on bail. Bail was made subject to furnishing bonds and compliance with conditions against influencing witnesses or tampering with evidence, with liberty to seek cancellation if misused.
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Reverse charge on bar licence fee rejected as TASMAC was not treated as the State Government under GST notifications.
Case-Laws
GST
Writ challenges to licence notices and tender conditions became infructuous after the licence period expired, so no effective relief could be granted on those issues. GST demands raised under reverse charge on 99% of the licence fee were unsustainable because TASMAC is a distinct juristic entity and not the State Government, Union Territory or local authority for the relevant notifications; the reverse charge entry therefore did not apply. The assessment orders and show cause notice on that basis were quashed. The Court left open independent GST liability, if any, on the petitioners' own supplies and permitted fresh proceedings under the machinery for unregistered persons, subject to limitation.
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Proper prior show cause notice under GST law is mandatory; summary in Form DRC-01 cannot replace statutory notice.
Case-Laws
GST
A proper prior show cause notice under Section 73(1) is a condition precedent for a valid order under Section 73(9), and the summary in Form GST DRC-01 with an attachment does not substitute for that statutory notice. The High Court reiterated that the notice, statement under Section 73(3), and order under Section 73(9) must each be issued by the proper officer in the manner required by the statute and rules. As only the summary notice was issued, the impugned order was unsustainable in law and was set aside. The authorities were given liberty to proceed afresh in accordance with law, and the petitioner may raise all available grounds in those proceedings.
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GST treatment of temple auction rights: licence-based supplies taxed, with limited exemptions for harvesting and precinct rentals.
Case-Laws
GST
A statutory religious body was treated as a body corporate engaged in business for GST purposes, and auctioning or tendering exclusive rights was characterised as a licensing arrangement and therefore a supply of services. GST was held payable on rights to collect offering-remnants and abandoned clothes, to perform rituals, and to operate toilets and washrooms, because the applicant was not itself supplying those services but granting commercial rights for consideration. Exemption was recognised for rights to harvest coconuts from temple lands as a service linked to agricultural operations, and for pooja item stalls as renting of precincts of a religious place, subject to notification conditions. Reverse charge did not apply to honorarium or sitting fees paid to the President and Members, but applied to legal services from advocates.
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Section 129 release of detained goods on penalty payment despite ownership dispute and pending demand adjudication.
Case-Laws
GST
Section 129 is described as a complete code for detention and release of goods in transit, requiring release on payment of the prescribed penalty where the owner or another person comes forward, without treating detention as a continuing lien pending final adjudication of the demand. On the facts discussed, objections regarding ownership, quantity, quality and supporting documents were not backed by contrary material sufficient to displace the petitioner's claim of ownership at that stage. The consignment was therefore directed to be released on compliance with Section 129(1)(a), while the revenue was left free to recover any finally sustained demand in accordance with law.
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Writ jurisdiction cannot quash pending criminal prosecution where disputed facts must be tried in a criminal court.
Case-Laws
GST
Writ jurisdiction under Article 226 was held unsuitable for quashing a pending CGST criminal prosecution where the complaint raised several disputed factual issues requiring trial. The Court treated the complaint as the foundation of the prosecution and declined to undertake any fact-finding inquiry or interfere with triable matters. It also held that Suncraft Energy (P) Ltd. was inapplicable because that decision concerned revenue action, not a pending criminal prosecution. The writ petition was dismissed, with liberty to the petitioner to raise all factual and jurisdictional objections before the jurisdictional criminal court during trial.
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Invalid service by affixation and premature tax recovery were held illegal, with refund ordered.
Case-Laws
GST
Service of a show cause notice by affixation is valid only when the prescribed alternative modes are not practicable and that impracticability is first recorded; absent such declaration, service is invalid and any demand founded on it is illegal. Recovery of tax before expiry of the statutory three-month payment period is permissible only where the proper officer records written reasons under the proviso for immediate action in the interest of revenue; recovery from the electronic ledger on the same day as the demand order, without recorded reasons, was therefore illegal. The demand order was set aside, refund was directed, and liberty was reserved to proceed afresh in accordance with law.
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GSTAT portal scrutiny guidelines extended, clarifying required appeal documents, certification, and Revenue filing requirements.
Circulars
GST
The GSTAT Principal Bench extended the earlier portal-filing guidelines and scrutiny instructions until 31 December 2026 to ease appeal filing during the initial implementation phase. Scrutiny officers are directed to verify that APL-05 includes soft copies of the SCN, OIO, OIA, statement of facts, grounds of appeal, and court fee or pre-deposit where required; no defect should be raised where higher-court orders exempt court fee or pre-deposit. For appeals under section 112(1), a scanned certified copy of the OIO or OIA is acceptable if the endorsement shows it is certified. Appellants must upload authorisation in favour of the tax professional or vakalatnama for an advocate. For Revenue applications under section 112(3), the listed documents are required, and no court fee or pre-deposit is payable.
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Composition levy stock intimation deadline extended for FORM GST CMP-03 filings under Assam GST rules.
Circulars
GST – States
The time limit for taxpayers opting for composition levy under section 10 of the Assam GST Act to intimate details of stock held on the preceding date in FORM GST CMP-03 is extended until 31 January 2018. The order supersedes the earlier Assam GST order on the same subject, thereby replacing the previous deadline with the extended period.
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