High Court refuses to entertain writ petition challenging account freeze under CGST Act, allows challenge to subsequent orders

The Allahabad High Court declined to entertain the writ petition challenging the order freezing the petitioner's account under Section 83 of the CGST Act by the Deputy Director, citing the dismissal of a previous writ petition by the Supreme Court and the subsequent order by the Additional Director. The High Court found the original communication had lost relevance due to the subsequent order and the Supreme Court's decision, allowing the petitioner to challenge the subsequent orders by the Additional Director, subject to legal constraints.

---

---

Issues: Jurisdiction of Deputy Director under Section 83 of CGST Act, 2017; Challenge to order freezing account; Effect of Supreme Court's dismissal of previous writ petition; Validity of subsequent order by Additional Director.

In this judgment by the Allahabad High Court, the petitioner challenged the order of the Deputy Director, Agra Regional Unit, freezing their account under Section 83 of the Central Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017. The petitioner argued that the Deputy Director lacked jurisdiction to issue such an order due to not holding the rank of Commissioner. However, it was revealed that the same order had been challenged by the petitioner before the Supreme Court in a previous writ petition, which was dismissed with costs imposed on the petitioners. The High Court noted that since the Supreme Court had already dealt with the matter and subsequent to the impugned communication, another order freezing the same account had been passed by the Additional Director, the original communication had lost its relevance and utility. Therefore, the High Court declined to entertain the writ petition, citing the petitioner's previous unsuccessful attempt before the Supreme Court and the subsequent order by the Additional Director. The dismissal was made without prejudice to the petitioner's rights to challenge the subsequent orders by the Additional Director, subject to any legal impediments, especially in light of the Supreme Court's rejection of the previous writ petition.

---