Detained goods release under GST detention provisions as Section 129(1)(b) computation was found unsustainable on the facts.

Detained goods were held liable to release under Section 129(1)(a) of the CGST Act read with Section 20 of the IGST Act, because the owner's claim fell within that provision and the authorities' computation under Section 129(1)(b) could not be sustained on the facts. The writ petition, confined to proceedings under Section 129, was treated as materially similar to an earlier decision of the same Court on the same issue. The goods were directed to be released and the impugned order dated 29 July 2024 was quashed.

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Issues: Whether the detained goods were liable to be released under Section 129(1)(a) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 read with Section 20 of the Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, or whether the authorities were justified in proceeding under Section 129(1)(b) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

Analysis: The writ petition was confined to the proceedings under Section 129 of the CGST Act. The factual matrix and the controversy were found to be materially similar to an earlier decision of the same Court on the same issue. The Court accepted the petitioner's case that the goods owner's claim attracted Section 129(1)(a) and that the impugned computation under Section 129(1)(b) could not be sustained on the facts.

Conclusion: The goods were directed to be released under Section 129(1)(a) of the CGST Act read with the IGST Act, and the impugned order dated 29 July 2024 was quashed.

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