📰 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗵𝗶 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗦𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗔𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗚𝗦𝗧 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗢𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗟𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗢𝗳 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆

📢 The Delhi High Court ruled that the GST Department's cancellation of Panna Impex's GST registration lacked the required specificity in the Show Cause Notice (SCN), thereby setting aside the cancellation and granting the company another opportunity to present its case.

🔍 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀: 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗧𝗶𝘁𝗹𝗲: Panna Impex vs Commissioner of Central Goods and Services Tax 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗡𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿: W.P.(C) 7897/2023 & CM APPL. 30503/2023 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲: 31-May-2023

𝗜𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲: • 9-Jun-2022: A Show Cause Notice was issued to Panna Impex, stating the reason for proposed GST registration cancellation as "OTHERS" without specifying the grounds. This ambiguity in the notice left the petitioner unable to respond meaningfully. • 23-Aug-2022: An order was passed cancelling Panna Impex’s GST registration, declaring the company non-existent.

• 19-Apr-2023: The appeal against the cancellation order was dismissed on the grounds of being time-barred. • 08-Jun-2023: The Delhi High Court intervened and set aside both the cancellation order and the rejection of the appeal, directing that Panna Impex be given another opportunity to respond to the SCN.

⚖ 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁 𝗢𝗯𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: The court emphasized that a show cause notice must clearly state the grounds for cancellation so that the petitioner can respond appropriately. In this case, the vague mention of "OTHERS" failed to meet the legal requirements for specificity. Furthermore, denying an appeal based on technical grounds (time-barred) without addressing the underlying issue was improper.

⚖ 𝗝𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: The Delhi High Court set aside the impugned orders and directed the GST Department to provide Panna Impex with a fresh opportunity to respond, including scheduling a personal hearing. The court highlighted the importance of following due process and ensuring that any notice gives the taxpayer a fair chance to respond.

📜 This ruling reinforces the principle that GST registration cancellations must follow proper procedure, ensuring that businesses are not unfairly penalized due to vague or insufficient reasoning in show cause notices. Team GSTpanacea 7503031378