GST proceedings without DIN are invalid and treated as never issued under the governing circulars.

GST proceedings issued without a Document Identification Number were treated as invalid under the governing circulars, because a communication lacking an electronically generated DIN or unique identification number is regarded as never having been issued. On that basis, the challenged proceedings could not stand in law and were set aside.

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Issues: Whether the impugned GST proceedings were invalid and liable to be set aside for want of a Document Identification Number.

Analysis: The impugned proceedings did not bear any DIN. The governing circulars make it clear that a communication issued without an electronically generated DIN or unique identification number is to be treated as invalid and as never having been issued. Since the challenged proceedings were issued without compliance with that requirement, they could not stand in law.

Conclusion: The impugned proceedings were invalid for absence of DIN and were rightly set aside.

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