9911796707
TMI Blog2023 (10) TMI 792X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... visions of the said Acts, the genesis being a show cause notice dated 22 August, 2022. The only reason as set out in the show cause notice to cancel the registration, reads thus: "In case, Registration has been obtained by means of fraud, willful misstatement or suppression of facts." The show cause notice also has suspended the registration of the petitioner with effect from 22 August, 2022. 3. The case of the petitioner is that the petitioner submitted a reply to the show cause notice on 25 August, 2022 inter alia contending that the Directors of the Company had appeared before the Designated Officer and had given their respective statements as also submitted all the relevant documents. It is contended by the petitioner that as initially the documents submitted were not accepted by the department, they were forwarded by email. It is also pointed out by the petitioner that all the documents were loaded on the portal while obtaining the registration, the details of which were also set out in the reply. Further, the staff of the department had visited the petitioner's registered place of business, as also were furnished documents. It is hence the petitioner's case that the peti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... submitted before the appellate authority several documents, namely, Memorandum and Articles of Association, Certificate of incorporation, Registered Office Agreement, Additional Place of Business Copy of Agreement, Electricity Bill of POB and APOB, Outward supply bills copy with E way Bills, Inward supply bills copy with E way Bills, Stock Statement upto March 2022, Balance Sheet as on 31.02.2021 and 31.03.2022, Bank Statements up to March 2022 and Transport Arrangement Agreement. 8. By a further letter dated 18 November, 2022, the petitioner submitted additional documents, namely, Certificate of Incorporation, Aadhar & Pan Card for the Directors, Balance and Audit Report for the year ended March 2022, Trial Balance from April 2022 to till, Sales Register with additional columns having E-way bills and quantity, Purchase register, Agreement copy with Transporter, Sales Invoice, Purchase Invoice, Ledger copies of major suppliers and customers, Bank statement, Stock Register, Summary of Sales and Purchase, Rent copies of APOB & POR given on rent by the Director Mr. Vasant Khuman, Declaration from Mr. Dinesh Jaiswal for his earlier Licensee Mr. Mohammed Yunus Shaikh, Declaration from ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cision of this Court in C.P. Pandey & Co. vs. Commissioner of State Tax (2023) 10 Centax 11 (Bom.), Monit Trading Pvt. Ltd. vs. Union of India (2023) 8 Centax 248 (Bom.), Ramji Enterprises & Ors. vs. Commissioner of State Tax & Ors. Writ Petition No. 277 of 2023 dated 10.07.2023 and Nirakar Ramchandra Pradhan vs. Union of India & Ors. Writ Petition No. 2534 of 2023 dated 11.09.2023. 13. Learned counsel for the respondents, however and quite surprisingly, has instructions to support the impugned order. She is not in a position to justify that the impugned order is bereft of any reasons and more particularly considering the documents which were placed on record not only before the designated authority but also the appellate authority. In support of her contention, learned counsel for the respondent has placed reliance on the reply affidavit of Mr. Prakash Narendra Shelake, Joint Commissioner of State Tax, Nodal Division-5, Mumbai, which is tendered before us today. The affidavit for the first time has intended to justify the impugned order and for reasons which are completely dehors and/or outside the impugned order. 14. Having heard learned counsel for the parties and having peru ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... physical or electronic form, were found maintained at the principal place of business. As pointed out on behalf of the petitioner, all the necessary books which were available with the petitioner were submitted, which we have noted above. There is not a whisper of reference to such material in the impugned order passed by the appellate authority. This apart even in regard to the premises of the petitioner, the petitioner had furnished documents and reasons on the rental agreement it had with the sister concern M/s. Kayavlon Impex Pvt. Ltd. The appellate authority nowhere refers as to why such rental agreement would be not acceptable for the petitioner to occupy the premises much less under any rule. The appellate authority is certainly not an authority which would have any jurisdiction which any forums under the Rent Act or under the Companies Act would exercise to comment on the nature of the said agreement. Thus, in our opinion, the reasons as set out by the appellate authority in confirming the order passed by the Assistant Commissioner are ex-facie untenable. At no point of time, it appears that the petitioner was called upon to furnish any clarification on the legal status or ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... against the petitioner cancelling its registration. If the elementary principles of law of adherence to the principles of natural justice, in regard to issuance and adjudication of show cause notices are not being followed by such authorities, the fate of the citizens at the hands of the authorities, is just to be imagined. This is one case which in our opinion is an eye opener. Certainly, the orders passed by these authorities have resulted in civil consequences. It has directly affected the rights of the petitioner guaranteed under Articles 19(1)(g) and 300A of the Constitution. We may observe that in a given case the conduct of the assessee may he howsoever in breach of the rules and law, but that does not mean that the authorities who are to act under law could have powers to throw to the wind all cannons of fairness, non-arbitrariness and discard the lawful procedure required to be followed by them in any administrative adjudication. At all material times, such authorities would be required to act in strict adherence to the rule of law in passing orders in discharge of their official duties under the Act and the Rules. Such officers can in no manner have an approach to violate ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... proved counter-productive to the interest of revenue, if the department is correct in its case as put up in the reply affidavit for the first time. The concerned Commissionerate needs to take a serious view of such approach of the concerned officers who are not following the law in issuing appropriate show cause notices more particularly when the issues are serious. Such deviation by the concerned officers from deviating from following the well settled norms and procedure, in fact would benefit an assessee if there is material that he has committed illegalities." 17. We also note that similar view has been taken by the Division Bench of Gujarat High Court in the case of Lakkad Brothers vs. State of Gujarat (2023) 4 Centax 364 (Guj.), as also by the Delhi High Court in the case of Quality Traders vs. Yogesh Kumar (2023) 10 Centax 150 (Del.) and by the Allahabad High Court in DRS Wood Products vs. State of Uttar Pradesh 2022(64) G.S.T.L. 132 (All.). 18. We are of the opinion that time and again the department is not required to be told by the Court as to what would be the position in law as also the correct approach in law, the officers needs to follow. We observe so, as repeated ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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