TMI Blog2023 (4) TMI 704X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tion to block the input tax credit - HELD THAT:- The petitioner is not in a position to dispute the issuance and receipt of the above show cause notice. The show cause notice issued is in respect of all the five financial years in respect of which the allegations against the petitioner about wrongful availment of Input Tax Credit are made - with the issuance of show cause notice, under section 74 of the Act, there is no gainsaying that the proceedings for adjudication have commenced. As the adjudication proceedings have begun, and the petitioner would be participating in the said proceedings by filling its reply and availing reasonable opportunity of hearing, which will be extended by the authorities, the legality and validity of second provisional attachment order need not to be gone into. It would be rather a proper course to be adopted to direct the authorities to complete the adjudication proceedings time-bound. Once the proceedings are over, the rights of the parties shall stand crystallized leaving the order of provisional attachment to its own fate. Petition disposed off. - HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE N.V. ANJARIA and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE DEVAN M. DESAI Appeara ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ourt. Certain observations made and directions were passed in the said order to regulate the rights and obligations between the petitioner and the service tax authorities. In order to protect the interests of the Bank, the arrangement was worked out as detailed in paragraph Nos. 9 and 10 of the order. 3.2.1 Those directions are reproduced hereinbelow to rest the reference of the said petition there, extracting para 9, 9. With a view to protect the interest of the Bank as well as department, we want the writ applicant to file an undertaking on oath before this Court and the department as under: (a) Madhav Copper Ltd. would also intimate and ensure that amounts receivables from the list of all the 47 debtors, which are under provisional attachment of the department, would be received only in the Current Account Nos.03480200000834, maintained with Bank of Baroda, Main Branch, Bhavnagar; (b) The finished goods lying in the factory premises and are under provisional attachment of the department, would be supplied only to the public sector entities such as Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, Indian Railways, etc. and two foreign contracts of Sri Lanka and United Kingdom, a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e of order dated 26.7.2021 came to an end on 25.7.2022. Thus the order of provisional attachment dated 26.7.2021 has now worked out its life of one year. 3.4 It appears that while the aforesaid date of 25.7.2022 was yet to approach, the competent authority passed another order re-exercising powers under section 83 of the Act. The provisional attachment order was passed for second time on 8.7.2022. The said order came to be called in question by the petitioner by filling subsequent Special Civil Application No. 17881 of 2022. The prime and primary contention of the petitioner to assail the second provisional attachment order dated 8.7.2022 was that section 83 of the Act contemplates passing of such order only once, and that there no power is available to the competent authority to repeat the provisional attachment after period of one year mentioned in sub-section (2) of section 83 gets over. In another words, it was contended that there was no power with the authorities to extend the provisional attachment beyond one year. Be as it may. 3.5 In view of the nature of the order passed hereinbelow, the court is not required to go into the merit of the said contention about compete ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... respect of cancellation of the registration within eight weeks, in accordance with law. 5.2 As far as the challenge to the second provisional attachment order dated 8.7.2022 is concerned, the developments at the end of the competent authorities would guide the future course of action. 5.2.1 In the affidavit dated 27th September, 2022 filed by the Assistant Commissioner of State Tax (6), Enforcement Division-2, Ahmedabad it was the stand evinced inter alia that the department would issue intimation of statement of liability in form DRC-01A within short span of time and thereafter show cause notice would also be issued. In furtherance of the aforesaid statement, the competent authority has acted and show cause notices are issued under section 74 of the Act. In this regard, it is mentioned in further affidavit dated 24th March, 2023 that the respondent authorities had issued intimation dated 14.11.2022. Learned Assistant Government Pleader Mr. Manan Mehta stated before the court upon instructions from Lakhdhirsinh B. Rathod, Assistant Commissioner of State Tax (6), Enforcement Division-2, Ahmedabad, that thereafter formal show cause notice dated 31.3.2023 has also been issued t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... credit account of the petitioner to ensure that the financial interests of the Bank are not jeoperdised in any way. He submitted that since the dispute between the parties and the legal proceedings in that regard are pending and adjudication would be a time-bound exercise, the arrangement made in the interim order passed in the first petition may be continued till the show cause notices are finally adjudicated. The submission could be countenanced, as the request made is reasonable, not capable of being opposed by either of the side including the petitioner. 7.1 Therefore, the arrangement in order dated 4.5.2022 reproduced in para 3 above of this order, shall continue to operate till the competent GST authority completes the adjudication proceedings and pass necessary orders. 8. Except that the aforesaid arrangement provided for by the court in earlier petition is made part of the order of this petition, the earlier Special Civil Application challenging the first provisional attachment order would not survive for any further consideration in view of the subsequent developments and in light of passing of the present order. 9. In that view, learned senior advocate for the pe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
