Provisional release of detained GST goods granted on compliance with Rule 140(1) pending swift adjudication.

Goods detained under GST laws were directed to be released provisionally on compliance with Rule 140(1) of the Kerala GST Rules, while adjudication continued under Section 129 of the CGST Act and the Kerala GST Act. Following an earlier Division Bench direction in a similar matter, the Court required the competent authority to complete adjudication expeditiously and ordered that it be finished within one week. The operative effect was provisional release of the detained goods pending adjudication, subject to compliance with the prescribed rule.

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Issues: Whether goods detained under the GST laws were liable to be released pending adjudication and what directions were required for completion of the adjudication.

Analysis: The detention was governed by Section 129 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and the Kerala State Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The Court followed the earlier Division Bench direction in a similar matter and directed that the adjudication be completed expeditiously. It also held that where the petitioner complies with Rule 140(1) of the Kerala Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017, the detained goods should be released forthwith pending adjudication.

Conclusion: The petitioner was entitled to provisional release of the detained goods on compliance with Rule 140(1), and the competent authority was directed to complete adjudication within one week.

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