Ex parte GST adjudication set aside, with matter remitted to the show-cause reply stage for merits consideration.

An ex parte adjudication under Section 73(9) of the Karnataka GST Act was set aside because the petitioner had not filed a reply to the show-cause notice and had sought an opportunity to contest the allegation that exempted turnover in GSTR-3B lacked supporting documents. The HC held that interests of justice required restoration of the matter to the stage of reply to the notice, so the petitioner could meet the allegations on merits. The adjudication order was therefore quashed and the matter remitted for reconsideration from the reply stage.

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Issues: Whether the adjudication order passed under Section 73(9) of the Karnataka Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, deserved to be set aside and the matter remitted to the stage of reply to the show-cause notice on the ground that the order was passed ex parte without a reply from the petitioner.

Analysis: The impugned adjudication was found to have been passed without the petitioner filing a reply to the show-cause notice, while the notice itself proceeded on the alleged absence of supporting documents for the exempted turnover declared in GSTR-3B. In view of the petitioner's request for an opportunity to meet the allegations on merits and the fact that the order was ex parte, the Court found that the interests of justice would be served by restoring the matter to the stage of reply to the show-cause notice.

Conclusion: The adjudication order was set aside and the matter was remitted for reconsideration from the stage of reply to the show-cause notice.

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