Personal hearing under GST must be duly intimated before adverse adjudication; failure to do so vitiates the order.

Under the Gujarat GST Act, the statutory right to personal hearing under section 75 must be meaningfully complied with before an adverse adjudication order is passed. Where the assessee was not duly intimated of the date, time and venue of hearing, the procedural safeguard was breached and natural justice was offended. The adjudication order and the appellate order were therefore set aside, and the matter was remitted for fresh adjudication after due intimation of hearing, with the remaining contentions left open.

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Issues: Whether failure to intimate the date, time and venue of personal hearing before passing the adjudication order vitiated the order under the Gujarat Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

Analysis: Section 75(4) mandates an opportunity of hearing where a request is received or where an adverse decision is contemplated, and Section 75(5) contemplates adjournment for sufficient cause, subject to the prescribed limit. On the facts, the proceedings reflected that the details of personal hearing were not duly conveyed to the assessee before the adverse order was passed. The absence of such intimation amounted to a breach of the procedural safeguard attached to adjudication and therefore offended natural justice.

Conclusion: Yes. The adjudication order and the appellate order were liable to be set aside for breach of the requirement of hearing.

Final Conclusion: The matter was remitted for fresh adjudication after due intimation of hearing, while leaving the remaining contentions open.

Ratio Decidendi: Where an adverse tax order is contemplated, the statutory requirement of hearing must be meaningfully complied with by intimating the assessee the hearing particulars, and failure to do so vitiates the adjudication.

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