https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=468471 An adjudication is vulnerable where the same officer conducts the audit, issues the show cause notice and then decides the matter, because that sequence can create a reasonable apprehension of bias and offend natural justice. The Karnataka High Court held that, although the statute did not expressly bar this arrangement, the decision-making process must remain independent in appearance as well as substance. As the defect tainted the order in original, the consequential appellate and recovery actions could not stand. The matter was remitted for fresh adjudication by a different proper officer after hearing the taxpayer and considering any additional material. en-us Wed, 25 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0530 Thu, 07 May 2026 18:57:18 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=468471 An adjudication is vulnerable where the same officer conducts the audit, issues the show cause notice and then decides the matter, because that sequence can create a reasonable apprehension of bias and offend natural justice. The Karnataka High Court held that, although the statute did not expressly bar this arrangement, the decision-making process must remain independent in appearance as well as substance. As the defect tainted the order in original, the consequential appellate and recovery actions could not stand. The matter was remitted for fresh adjudication by a different proper officer after hearing the taxpayer and considering any additional material. Case-Laws GST Wed, 25 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=468471