Valid GST service requires effective notice; uploading show-cause notices and orders solely on the Common Portal is insufficient.

Uploading a show-cause notice and adjudication order solely on the GST Common Portal does not constitute valid service where the statutory framework does not expressly authorise the Portal to replace formal communication. The retrospective amendment on functions performed through the Common Portal and the CGST Rules limit its use to specified functions, without treating mere uploading as valid service of notices or orders. Portal-based communication that causes serious civil consequences without effective notice is impermissible. The assessee must receive an opportunity of hearing before adjudication.

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Issues: Whether uploading a show-cause notice and adjudication order solely on the Common Portal constitutes valid service upon an assessee under the GST framework.

Analysis: The retrospective amendment concerning functions capable of being performed through the Common Portal did not expressly authorize the Portal to substitute formal service of a show-cause notice or order. The Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017 confine the Common Portal's use to specified functions and do not provide that mere uploading of such documents amounts to their valid communication. A complex portal-based mode of communication that results in serious civil consequences, without effective notice to the assessee, is impermissible.

Conclusion: Uploading the show-cause notice and order only on the Common Portal did not constitute valid service; the assessee is entitled to adjudication after an opportunity of hearing.

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