In GST registration cancellation matters, a show-cause notice...

In GST registration cancellation matters, a show-cause notice must disclose the precise default and the relevant period so the assessee gets an effective opportunity to reply. A notice that only alleges continuous non-filing of returns, without identifying the period of default, is defective; a later cancellation order cannot cure that defect by relying on reasons not stated in the notice. The cancellation order must also be reasoned in the prescribed form. Because cancellation has adverse civil consequences, compliance with Section 29 and Rule 22 is part of natural justice. The impugned cancellation was quashed and the matter restored to the show-cause stage.

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