Delhi HC Remands GST Case for Fresh Hearing, Imposes Rs 20,000 Cost on Petitioner
The Petitioner, Wooden Craft, challenged a GST show cause notice (SCN) dated 20th May, 2024 and the demand order dated 25th August, 2024, along with three GST notifications: Notification No. 9/2023-Central Tax dated 31st March, 2023; Notification No. 56/2023-Central Tax dated 28th December, 2023; Notification No. 56/2023-State Tax dated 11th July, 2024.
The petitioner claimed that the show cause notice (SCN) and reminder notices were uploaded only on the ‘Additional Notices Tab‘ of the GST portal, and the petitioner was not aware of them. The petitioner submitted that the order was passed without giving an opportunity for a personal hearing. They came to know about the notice and the orders after they got a phone call from the GST Department.
The Delhi High Court observed that the petitioner was not given a proper opportunity for a hearing, and the petitioner could not even file a reply against the SCN. Considering the same, the court remanded the matter to the Adjudicating Authority and quashed the order, subject to a payment of Rs 20,000 as costs to the Delhi High Court Bar Association.
The petitioner was directed to file the reply to the show cause notice by 15 December 2025. After this, the Adjudicating Authority must issue a notice for a personal hearing and pass a fresh order after considering submissions.
Regarding the validity of the notification, the court left the matter open. The validity of these notifications is still being considered by the Supreme Court in case S.L.P. No. 4240/2025 (M/s HCC-SEW-MEIL-AAG JV v. Assistant Commissioner of State Tax & Ors.) and by the Delhi High Court in the case of Engineers India Limited v. Union of India & Ors.
Case Citation: Wooden Craft Vs Commissioner of Delhi GST (Delhi HC); W.P.(C) 17074/2025; 11/11/2025
