JS Fusion Industries Private Limited VS State Tax Officer

The petitioner, an assessee under the Goods and Services Tax Act, has been non-compliant with filing returns since May 2018. The issue at hand is a series of assessment orders issued by the 1st respondent under Section 62 of the GST Act, which were based on best judgment assessments. The petitioner argues in the writ petition that while the GST Act allows for an automatic setting aside of such assessments if a valid return is filed within 30 days of the assessment order, this provision seems ineffective in their situation. This is because even if the petitioner submits the returns within the extended timeframe allowed, they believe this remedy will not resolve their grievance adequately.

The petitioner, who is an assessee under the Goods and Services Tax Act and listed with the 1st respondent, failed to file returns from May 2018 onwards The grievance raised in the writ petition concerns a series of assessment orders issued by the 1st respondent under Section 62 of the GST Act, following a best judgment assessment In the petition, the petitioner argues that although the Act provides for an automatic setting aside of the best judgment assessment if the registered dealer submits a valid return within 30 days of receiving the assessment order, this provision seems ineffective in his situation He contends that even if he were to submit the returns within the 30-day period, he would still be unable to pay the tax liability as indicated in the returns Consequently, the petitioner requests a directive to annul the assessment orders issued by the 1st respondent, citing the impracticality of meeting the tax obligations within the given timeframe.

The petitioner, an assessee under the Goods and Services Tax Act (GST Act), failed to file returns from May 2018 onwards, which led to the issuance of a series of assessment orders by the 1st respondent under Section 62 of the GST Act, based on best judgment assessments. The petitioner challenges these orders in the writ petition, arguing that although the Act allows for the automatic setting aside of such assessments if a valid return is submitted within 30 days of receiving the order, this provision seems ineffective in their case. The petitioner contends that even if they filed the returns within the extended period, they would not be able to pay the tax liability as reflected in the returns. Consequently, the petitioner requests a direction to quash the assessment orders issued by the 1st respondent, claiming that the orders were passed without adhering to the appropriate guidelines set out in Section 62. The case was discussed with the petitioner’s counsel and the Government Pleader for the respondents. Upon reviewing the situation and the arguments presented, it is noted that Section 62 of the GST Act requires the proper officer to make a best judgment assessment only when an assessee refuses to provide necessary details for an assessment through timely return filing, and this assessment should consider all relevant materials available.

The petitioner, who is subject to the Goods and Services Tax Act and registered with the first respondent, failed to file returns from May 2018 onward. The issue raised in the writ petition concerns a series of assessment orders issued by the first respondent under Section 62 of the GST Act, following a best judgment assessment. The petitioner argues that although the Act allows for the automatic setting aside of these assessments if a valid return is filed within 30 days of receiving the assessment order, this provision seems ineffective in their case. The petitioner contends that even if they were to submit the returns within the 30-day extension period, they would still be unable to pay the tax due as indicated in the returns. Consequently, the petitioner seeks to have the assessment orders quashed, asserting that the first respondent did not follow the proper guidelines for issuing these orders under Section 62.

The court has heard arguments from both the petitioner’s counsel and Smt. Thushara James, the Government Pleader for the respondents. After reviewing the facts and the arguments presented, the court noted that under Section 62 of the GST Act, a best judgment assessment can only be made if an assessee fails to provide required details through a timely return. The proper officer must then finalize the assessment based on the available or gathered relevant material. Section 62(2) specifies that if the assessee submits a valid return within 30 days of receiving the best judgment assessment order, the order will be considered withdrawn, except for any interest due on late tax payments. The statutory provisions are clear on the timeframe within which an assessee must file returns and pay the tax based on those returns.

The petitioner, an assessee under the Goods and Services Tax Act, is challenging a series of best judgment assessment orders issued by the 1st respondent starting from May 2018 due to the petitioner’s failure to file returns. The petitioner’s main issue is that, although there is a provision in the Act allowing for the automatic setting aside of a best judgment assessment if a valid return is filed within 30 days of the assessment order, this provision seems ineffective in the petitioner’s case. This is because, even if the petitioner were to file the returns within the extended period, they would still be unable to pay the admitted tax liability as reflected in those returns. Consequently, the petitioner seeks a directive to quash the assessment orders, arguing that the 1st respondent did not follow the appropriate guidelines set out in Section 62 of the GST Act while making these assessments.

Upon review, the court finds that Section 62 of the GST Act requires that if an assessee does not file the necessary particulars for an assessment within the designated time, the officer may complete the assessment based on the best judgment, considering all available or gathered relevant materials. Subsection (2) of Section 62 allows for the best judgment assessment to be automatically withdrawn if the assessee submits a valid return within 30 days of receiving the assessment order, though interest for late tax payment would still apply. The statutory provisions specify the timeframe for submitting returns and paying taxes to potentially cancel the best judgment assessment.

In this case, it is acknowledged that the assessee did not file the returns on time, which led to the assessment being completed on a best judgment basis. Although the petitioner argues that the assessment was conducted arbitrarily and not in accordance with Section 62, the legal provisions provide that the assessee can still file returns within an additional 30 days and pay the tax based on those returns, thereby causing the best judgment assessment to be withdrawn.

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