W.A.(MD)Nos.
1934 and 1935 of 2025
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
DATED : 23.07.2025
CORAM
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE G.R.SWAMINATHAN
and
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE K.RAJASEKAR
W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
and
C.M.P.(MD)Nos.11019 and 11020 of 2025
W.A.(MD)No.1934 of 2025:-
Tvl.Dimora,
Rep. by its Managing Partner,
Mr.A.Muruganantham,
4th Floor, 29/30, Ambigai City Center,
Swaminatha Sastri Road,
Thillai Nagar,
Tiruchirappalli 620 018. ... Appellant
Vs.
1.The Assistant Commissioner (State Tax),
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C/2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross,
Thillai Nagar West,
Trichy 620 018.
2.The Deputy State Tax Officer - II,
Office of the Commercial Tax Department,
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross, Thillai Nagar (West),
Tiruchirappalli 620 018.
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
3.The Deputy Commercial Tax Officer,
Commercial Tax Department,
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross,
Thillai Nagar (West),
Tiruchirappalli 620 018.
4.The Branch Manager,
ICICI Bank Limited,
Thuraiyur Branch,
199-2A, Trichy Road Madhurapuri,
Thuraiyur 621 010
5.The Branch Manager,
ICICI Bank Limited,
Neelankarai Branch,
Plot No.20, 21, Rajasthan Nagar ECR,
Neelkarai, Chennai 600041.
6.The Branch Manager,
ICICI Bank Limited,
Bangalore – NR Road,
100-1, Narasimha Raja Road,
Opp. Town Hall,
Bangalore 560 002
7.The Branch Manager,
State Bank of India,
Thillai Nagar,
First Main Road, Trichy. ... Respondents
Prayer : Writ Appeal filed under Clause XV of Letters Patent, to allow
the writ appeal by setting aside the order passed in W.P.(MD)No.16202
of 2025 dated 16.06.2025 on the file of this Court.
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
For Appellant : Mr.S.Muthuvenkatraman.
For Respondents : Mr.R.Suresh Kumar
Addl. Government Pleader for R1 to R3.
Mr.Krishna
For M/s.Acuity Law Associates for R4 to R6.
W.A.(MD)No.1935 of 2025:-
Tvl.Dimora,
Rep. by its Managing Partner,
Mr.A.Muruganantham,
4th Floor, 29/30, Ambigai City Center,
Swaminatha Sastri Road,
Thillai Nagar,
Tiruchirappalli 620 018. ... Appellant
Vs.
1.The Assistant Commissioner (State Tax),
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C/2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross,
Thillai Nagar West,
Trichy 620 018.
2.The Deputy State Tax Officer - II,
Office of the Commercial Tax Department,
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross, Thillai Nagar (West),
Tiruchirappalli 620 018.
3.The Deputy Commercial Tax Officer,
Commercial Tax Department,
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross,
Thillai Nagar (West),
Tiruchirappalli 620 018.
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
4.The Branch Manager,
ICICI Bank Limited,
Thuraiyur Branch,
199-2A, Trichy Road Madhurapuri,
Thuraiyur 621 010
5.The Branch Manager,
ICICI Bank Limited,
Neelankarai Branch,
Plot No.20, 21, Rajasthan Nagar ECR,
Neelkarai, Chennai 600041.
6.The Branch Manager,
ICICI Bank Limited,
Bangalore – NR Road,
100-1, Narasimha Raja Road,
Opp. Town Hall,
Bangalore 560 002
7.The Branch Manager,
State Bank of India,
Thillai Nagar,
First Main Road, Trichy. ... Respondents
Prayer : Writ Appeal filed under Clause XV of Letters Patent, to allow
the writ appeal by setting aside the order passed in W.P.(MD)No.16203
of 2025 dated 16.06.2025 on the file of this Court.
For Appellant : Mr.S.Muthuvenkatraman.
For Respondents : Mr.R.Suresh Kumar
Addl. Government Pleader for R1 to R3.
Mr.Krishna
For M/s.Acuity Law Associates for R4 to R6.
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
COMMON JUDGMENT
(By G.R.SWAMINATHAN, J.)
Heard both sides.
2.The appellant was running a hotel business. The case on hand
pertains to the assessment years 2018 – 2019 and 2019 – 2020. The hotel
business ran into losses and had to be closed. Even the annual returns
were not filed. Hence, GST registration was cancelled. Whileso, the
orders impugned in the writ petitions came to be passed by the assessing
officer calling upon the appellant to pay a certain sum towards tax and
penalty. Challenging the same, appellant filed W.P.(MD)Nos.16202 and
16203 of 2025. The learned Single Judge disposed of the writ petition
vide order dated 16.06.2025 in the following terms:-
“5. This Court is of the view that the order passed by this
Court, dated 28.02.2024 pursuant to which communication, dated
03.10.2024 was issued, is not in favour of the petitioner, as the
impugned orders, dated 14.08.2024 and 25.04.2024 were passed
long before the communication issued on 03.10.2024
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
6. Be that as it may, whenever there has been delay and the
assessee has not participated in the proceedings that preceded the
assessment order, this Court is inclined to rescue the persons like
the petitioner by permitting them to pay the disputed tax. On
payment of such 25% of the disputed tax, the order shall stand
quashed with liberty to the parties to file a reply with further
direction to the authorities to pass fresh orders on merits and in
accordance with law.
7. I see no reasons to take a different view in the present
case. Therefore, these writ petitions are disposed of by quashing
the impugned orders subject to the petitioner deposits 25% of the
disputed tax in cash. The respondents shall thereafter pass fresh
order on merits and in accordance with law. It is made clear that
once the petitioner makes a pre-deposit as has been ordered above,
which was consistently followed by this Court, respondents shall
pass fresh orders on merits and in accordance with law. It is open
to the petitioner to take advantage of the recent order that is said to
have been passed in the context of Section 168A of the respective
Goods and Services Tax Acts. The petitioner's bank accounts shall
be de-freezed subject to appropriation of 25% of the disputed tax.
There shall be no order as to costs. Consequently, the connected
miscellaneous petitions are closed.”
Aggrieved by the direction to deposit 25% of the disputed tax in cash,
these writ appeals have been filed.
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
3.It is true that the precedents on this issue are at variance with
each other. In some cases, the learned Single Judges have directed the
assessees to pay 25% of the disputed tax. In many other cases, remand
orders have been passed without any such stipulation.
4.Since there is no consensus between the parties, we have to
necessarily go into the merits of the matter. Section 169 of the Central
Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 stipulates that before passing final
order, notice has to be served on the assessee and the mode of service
should be as stipulated in Section 169 of the Act. The said provision
reads as under:-
“169.Service of notice in certain circumstances.
(1) Any decision, order, summons, notice or other communication
under this Act or the rules made thereunder shall be served by any
one of the following methods, namely:-
(a) by giving or tendering it directly or by a messenger including a
courier to the addressee or the taxable person or to his manager
or authorised representative or an advocate or a tax practitioner
holding authority to appear in the proceedings on behalf of the
taxable person or to a person regularly employed by him in
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
connection with the business, or to any adult member of family
residing with the taxable person; or
(b) by registered post or speed post or courier with
acknowledgment due, to the person for whom it is intended or his
authorised representative, if any, at his last known place of
business or residence; or
(c) by sending a communication to his e-mail address provided at
the time of registration or as amended from time to time; or
(d) by making it available on the common portal; or
(e) by publication in a newspaper circulating in the locality in
which the taxable person or the person to whom it is issued is last
known to have resided, carried on business or personally worked
for gain; or
(f) if none of the modes aforesaid is practicable, by affixing it in
some conspicuous place at his last known place of business or
residence and if such mode is not practicable for any reason, then
by affixing a copy thereof on the notice board of the office of the
concerned officer or authority who or which passed such decision
or order or issued such summons or notice.
(2) Every decision, order, summons, notice or any communication
shall be deemed to have been served on the date on which it is
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
tendered or published or a copy thereof is affixed in the manner
provided in sub-section (1).
(3) When such decision, order, summons, notice or any
communication is sent by registered post or speed post, it shall be
deemed to have been received by the addressee at the expiry of the
period normally taken by such post in transit unless the contrary
is proved.
5.In this case, admittedly, notice was only made available on the
common portal. Notice was not sent through RPID nor was and it served
in person. As rightly pointed out by the learned counsel for the appellant,
in view of cancellation of GST registration, they could not access the
portal.
6.When the assessee could not even access the portal, we have to
conclude that there was no notice of service on the assessee. In this view
of the matter, we hold that the orders impugned in the writ petitions were
vitiated on account of breach of principles of natural justice. They stand
quashed. The matter is remitted to the file of the assessing officer to
pass orders afresh in accordance with law.
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
7.These writ appeals are allowed accordingly. No costs.
Consequently, connected miscellaneous petitions are closed.
(G.R.S. J.,) & (K.R.S. J.,)
23.07.2025
NCC : Yes/No
Index : Yes / No
Internet : Yes/ No
ias
To:
1.The Assistant Commissioner (State Tax),
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C/2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross,
Thillai Nagar West,
Trichy 620 018.
2.The Deputy State Tax Officer - II,
Office of the Commercial Tax Department,
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross, Thillai Nagar (West),
Tiruchirappalli 620 018.
3.The Deputy Commercial Tax Officer,
Commercial Tax Department,
Woraiyur Assessment Circle,
C2, 2nd Floor, 2nd Cross,
Thillai Nagar (West),
Tiruchirappalli 620 018.
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
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W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
G.R.SWAMINATHAN, J.
and
K.RAJASEKAR, J.
ias
W.A.(MD)Nos.1934 and 1935 of 2025
23.07.2025
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