Tax Weekly Round-Up: February 23 - March 02, 2025

SUPREME COURTGST Act | Can Time Limit To Adjudicate Show Cause Notice Be Extended By Notification Under S.168A? Supreme Court To ConsiderCase Name: M/S HCC-SEW-MEIL-AAG JV v. ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF STATE TAX & ORS. Case no.: Petition for Special Leave to Appeal (C) No.4240/2025The Supreme Court is to decide whether the time limit for adjudicating show cause notice and passing an order can be extended by the issuance of notifications under Section 168-A of the GST Act. This provision empowers the Government to issue notification for extending the time limit prescribed under the Act which cannot be complied with due to force majeure. “The issue that falls for the consideration of this Court is whether the time limit for adjudication of show cause notice and passing order under Section 73 of the GST Act and SGST Act (Telangana GST Act) for financial year 2019-2020 could have been extended by issuing the Notifications in question under Section 168-A of the GST Act.,” remarked the Bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan.BNSS/CrPC Provisions On Rights Of Arrested Persons Applicable To GST & Customs Acts : Supreme CourtCase Title: Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India and Ors.Case no.: W.P.(Crl.) No. 336/2018 (and connected matters)The Supreme Court on Thursday(February 27) delivered a significant ruling on the powers of arrest under the Goods and Services Tax Act and the Customs Act.The Court held that the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure (now Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita) on the rights of accused persons are equally applicable to the arrests made both under the Customs Act and the GST Act.Some Merit In Allegations That GST Officials Coerce Assesses To Pay Tax With Threat Of Arrest; It's Impermissible: Supreme CourtCase Title: Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India and Ors.Case no.: W.P.(Crl.) No. 336/2018 (and connected matters)The Supreme Court on Thursday (February 27) observed that there was some merit in the allegation that tax officials coerce assesses to pay the Goods and Services Tax with the threat of arrest. This observation was made by the Court on the basis of data.The Court said that if any person is feeling coerced to pay GST, they can approach the writ court for refund of the tax paid by them under coercion. The Court also said that the officers who indulge in such coercion must be dealt with departmentally.Anticipatory Bail Application Maintainable Against Arrest Under GST Act : Supreme Court Overrules Its Previous JudgmentsCase Title: Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India and Ors.Case no.: W.P.(Crl.) No. 336/2018 (and connected matters)The Supreme Court has overruled its previous decisions which held that anticipatory bail applications were not maintainable with respect to offences under the Goods and Services Tax Act. A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna, Justice MM Sundresh and Justice Bela Trivedi overruled the two-judge bench judgments in State of Gujarat v. Choodamani Parmeshwaran Iyer and Another and Bharat Bhushan v. Director General of GST Intelligence, Nagpur Zonal Unit Through Its Investigating officer which held that a person summoned under the GST Act cannot file anticipatory bail application and that the only remedy was to file a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution.Arrest Under GST Act Cannot Be Made Merely To Investigate If Cognizable & Non-Bailable Offence Has Been Committed : Supreme CourtCase Title: Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India and Ors.Case no.: W.P.(Crl.) No. 336/2018 (and connected matters)An arrest under the Goods and Services Act cannot be carried out merely on the basis of suspicion, the Supreme Court stated. Such an arrest cannot be carried out merely to investigate if a cognizable and non-bailable offence has been committed. The Court held that the arrest must proceed on the belief supported by reasons relying on material that the conditions specified in sub-section (5) of Section 132 are satisfied. This means that there has to be a satisfaction that a cognizable and non-bailable offence has been committed.'Customs Officers' Are Not 'Police Officers', Must Satisfy Higher Threshold Of 'Reasons To Believe' Before Arrest : Supreme CourtCase Title: Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India and Ors.Case no.: W.P.(Crl.) No. 336/2018 (and connected matters)Dealing with a challenge to penal provisions of the Customs Act, the Supreme Court today observed that 'customs officers' are not 'police officers' and that they must satisfy a higher threshold of "reasons to believe" before arresting an accused. A bench of CJI Sanjiv Khanna and Justices MM Sundresh, Bela M Trivedi made the observation while delivering verdict in a batch of 279 petitions challenging the penal provisions in the Customs Act, CGST/SGST Act, etc. as non-compatible with the CrPC and the Constitution.Supreme Court Upholds Constitutionality Of GST Act Provisions On Arrest & SummonsCase Title: Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India and Ors.Case no.: W.P.(Crl.)...

Tax Weekly Round-Up: February 23 - March 02, 2025

Kapil Dhyani