Petitioner Granted Partial Fund Withdrawal from Attached Account to Meet 10% Pre-Deposit Appeal Requirement Under Section 107 CGST

HC allowed the petitioner to partially withdraw funds from a provisionally attached bank account to make a 10% pre-deposit for an appeal under Section 107 of CGST Act, 2017. The court lifted the provisional attachment solely for this specific purpose, enabling electronic transfer of funds to the government. All substantive legal contentions were preserved for future proceedings, and the petition was disposed of without imposing costs.

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Issues involved:
The issues involved in this case include challenging the Impugned Order dated 17.3.2023 under Section 83 of the CGST Act, 2017, and seeking relief through a writ of certiorari or mandamus under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. The Petitioner also sought permission to utilize funds for making a pre-deposit required for filing an appeal under Section 107 of the CGST Act, 2017.

Judgment Details:

1. The Petitioner filed a Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, challenging the Impugned Order provisionally attaching the Petitioner's Bank Account under Section 83 of the CGST Act, 2017. The Petitioner sought the quashing of the Impugned Order and the lifting of the provisional attachment.

2. The Petitioner had previously filed a Writ Petition, and after the show cause notice was adjudicated, the Petitioner filed an Appeal under Section 107 of the CGST Act, 2017, requiring a pre-deposit of 10% of the disputed tax amount. The Petitioner sought permission to withdraw funds from the bank account to make this pre-deposit for the Appeal.

3. The Court acknowledged the necessity for the Petitioner to utilize the funds for the pre-deposit, emphasizing that the amount would be deposited with the Government for the purpose of maintaining the Appeal and not for any private use. The Court noted that similar permissions had been granted in other cases.

4. In light of the above, the Court disposed of the Petition by allowing the Petitioner to operate Bank Account No. 713915009 to withdraw the required amount for the pre-deposit. The Petitioner was also permitted to use electronic transfer for making the deposit, and the provisional attachment of the bank account was lifted solely for this purpose.

5. The concerned Bank was directed to enable the Petitioner to make the deposit before a specified date. The Court clarified that all contentions of the parties on the merits of the Appeal were to be kept open for further proceedings.

6. The Petition was disposed of with no costs imposed on either party. The parties were instructed to act as per the authenticated copy of the Court's order for compliance with the directives provided.

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