summons issued by another state sgst department

[giri gattupalli]

resped sir,

whether summons issued  to a andhrapradesh registered and resident dealer by a karnataka sgst officer is valid ? and the dealer does have place of business in karnataka state and doest have  residence there. summons  are issued as a part of enquiry of a local karnataka dealer in respect of tax evation elegation .please guide....

[Padmanathan KV]

In my opinion, Karnataka SGST Officer does not have jurisdiction to issue summons to Registered Person in Andhra Pradesh. The right course of action for Karnataka SGST Officer would be to request the Jurisdictional Proper Officer of the Registered Person in Andhra Pradesh for required details.

[KALLESHAMURTHY MURTHY K.N.]

Sir, I do agree with the answer of Sri PKV sir. 

No officer can issue notices to the taxpayers out of his jurisdiction, even within the same state. 

[Sadanand Bulbule]

Here is my personal opinion:

Summons issued by the Karnataka SGST officer to an Andhra-registered dealer are invalid under KGST Act, as he lacks territorial jurisdiction.

However, if issued under CGST Act in connection with inter-state transactions, they may be legally sustainable being cross -empowered officer underSection 6[1] of the CGST Act.

[Padmanathan KV]

Sir, in your opinion, does "appointed under the State Goods and Services Tax Act" mean State Tax Officer appointed under the corresponding SGST Act of the registered person (in this case, in the State of Andhra Pradesh) or the State Tax Officer of all the States in the Country? If it is latter, what would have been the reason "SGST Act" has been mentioned in singular and not in plural?

[KASTURI SETHI]

 You can take cue from the following :-

(i) The issuance of "summons" does not constitute "proceedings"-----------held by Supreme Court in the case of ARMOUR SECURITY (INDIA) LTD. Versus COMMISSIONER OF CGST, DELHI EAST 2025 (8) TMI 991 - SUPREME COURT.

(ii) Peruse the above with Section 70 of CGST Act and Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908) and Sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860).

(iii) Study deep the meaning and scope of the legal terms, "Summons" and "Proceedings".

(iv) Section 70 is not independent of Indian Penal Code, 1860 and Code of Civil Procedure, 1908

[Asha Latha]

Summons proceedings u/s 70 are to be conducted as per as per Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. As per Rule 21 of the CPC, summons can be issued to persons residing within the territorial jurisdiction of the PO, but it can be extended up to 200 km.

In your case, since summons are issued to AP registration by Karnataka State dept (residing beyond 200 KM from the jurisdiction of PO), hence, summons are not valid.

[KASTURI SETHI]

In this scenario, it is necessary to know the exact meaning, essence and scope of ""proceedings"". Similarly, it is necessary to know the difference between the words, "enquiry" and "inquiry".

The issue of jurisdiction (based on distance) arises only if the issuance of summons conforms to the meaning, essence and scope of the term, "PROCEEDINGS".

[Sadanand Bulbule]

GST officers can summon any person located anywhere in India, if the person is connected to an inquiry conducted by the officer.

Territorial jurisdiction applies to assessment, not investigation.

 

[KASTURI SETHI]

I agree with the views  expressed  at serial no.6  above by Sh.Sadanand Bulbule, Sir.

AI Summary

Can a State SGST officer summon an out-of-state registered dealer - territorial limits, Section 70 and cross-empowerment issues A dealer registered and resident in one State received summons from another State's SGST officer during an inquiry into a local dealer. Opinions diverge: several forum respondents say a State SGST officer lacks territorial jurisdiction to summon a taxpayer registered elsewhere, and proper practice is to seek information through the taxpayer's jurisdictional officer; others note Section 70/CPC/IPC procedures govern summons (with a 200 km territorial extension) and that a CGST officer's cross-empowerment may sustain inter-state summons. A counterview asserts investigatory summons can reach persons nationwide while territorial limits mainly constrain assessment.