Unsigned show cause notice and order held invalid, with the impugned order set aside and proceedings allowed to continue.

An unsigned show cause notice and an unsigned impugned order, each lacking digital or scanned signatures, were held to be invalid in law. The court treated the absence of signature as a defect going to the root of the proceedings and found the order unsustainable. As the challenge to the notifications was not pressed, the only live issue was the legality of the unsigned notice and order. The impugned order was set aside, and the petitioner was given time to file a reply to the show cause notice, after which the proceedings were to continue in accordance with law.

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Issues: Whether an unsigned show cause notice and unsigned impugned order could be sustained in law, and whether the impugned order was liable to be set aside.

Analysis: The impugned show cause notice and the impugned order bore no digital signatures or scanned signatures. An unsigned notice or order cannot be treated as a valid order in law. Since the challenge to the notifications was not pressed, the only adjudicated question was the validity of the unsigned SCN and order. On the facts, the defect went to the root of the proceedings and justified interference.

Conclusion: The unsigned impugned order was not sustainable and was set aside. The petitioner was granted time to file a reply to the show cause notice, and the proceedings were directed to continue thereafter in accordance with law.

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