Issuance of only a summary show cause notice in Form GST DRC-01...

Issuance of only a summary show cause notice in Form GST DRC-01 does not satisfy the requirement of a proper prior notice under Section 73(1) read with Rule 142(1), because the summary is not a substitute for the statutory notice that sets adjudication in motion. The Court held that the notice, the statement under Section 73(3), and the order under Section 73(9) must be issued by the Proper Officer in accordance with the statutory scheme, and such compliance is a condition precedent to a valid Section 73(9) order. As no proper prior notice had been served, the HC quashed the impugned order and consequential actions, while granting liberty to initiate fresh proceedings and directing exclusion of the specified period for limitation purposes.

---