Technical lapse in e-way bill Part B alone does not justify penalty absent evidence of tax evasion.

Penalty under the Uttar Pradesh GST Act was found unsustainable where goods were supported by invoice, e-way bill, gate pass, bilty and other documents, and the goods matched the invoice. The only defect was non-filling of Part B of the e-way bill, treated as a technical lapse. In the absence of any material showing an intention to evade tax, the lapse alone did not justify penalty under section 129(3), consistent with earlier decisions. The assessee therefore succeeded on this issue.

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Issues: Whether penalty under Section 129(3) of the Uttar Pradesh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 was sustainable when Part B of the e-way bill was not filled, though the goods were accompanied by invoice and other documents and there was no material indicating an intention to evade tax.

Analysis: The goods were found to be covered by the invoice, e-way bill, gate pass, bilty and other accompanying documents, and there was no dispute that the goods matched the invoice. The only defect was non-filling of Part B of the e-way bill, which was treated as a technical lapse. The department did not establish any intention to evade tax, and the issue was covered by earlier decisions holding that such a lapse, by itself, does not justify penalty under the statute.

Conclusion: The penalty was not sustainable and the assessee succeeded on this issue.

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