https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=447054 During a GST search, the tax authority coerced a taxpayer to deposit a substantial amount through the electronic cash ledger without admission of liability and before any adjudication or issuance of an SCN. The HC held that Sections 73(5)-73(6) CGST Act permit only voluntary pre-SCN payment and do not authorize compelled recovery during investigation; any collection without authority of law violates Article 300A. Non-compliance with Rule 142 CGST Rules, including failure to issue Form GST DRC-04 acknowledging voluntariness after DRC-03, reinforced that the deposit was under duress. Refund was allowed and the authority was directed to process it forthwith. en-us Thu, 14 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0530 Mon, 12 Jan 2026 14:49:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=447054 During a GST search, the tax authority coerced a taxpayer to deposit a substantial amount through the electronic cash ledger without admission of liability and before any adjudication or issuance of an SCN. The HC held that Sections 73(5)-73(6) CGST Act permit only voluntary pre-SCN payment and do not authorize compelled recovery during investigation; any collection without authority of law violates Article 300A. Non-compliance with Rule 142 CGST Rules, including failure to issue Form GST DRC-04 acknowledging voluntariness after DRC-03, reinforced that the deposit was under duress. Refund was allowed and the authority was directed to process it forthwith. Case-Laws GST Thu, 14 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=447054