TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2020 (2) TMI 741
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....plicant has prayed for the following reliefs: "a) Quash and set aside impugned notice dated 03.06.2019 issued under Section 130 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 at ANNEXURE-A to this petition, and direct the Respondent to drop the proceedings initiated under Section 130 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017; b) Pending admission, hearing and final disposal of this petition, this Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to stay further proceedings pursuant to impugned notice dated 03.06.2019 issued under Section 130 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 at ANNEXURE-A to this petition and also direct Respondent to release vehicle bearing registration number GJ-25-U-9952 along with 24,890 Kgs. of....
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....the vehicle as well as the goods at the earliest on the writ applicant depositing an amount of Rs. 1,60,000/- (Rupees One Lakh Sixty Thousand Only) with the concerned authority at the earliest. The issue shall be looked into on the returnable date along with the allied matters. To be heard with Special Civil Application No.9897 of 2019 and allied matters. Direct service is permitted." 4. While issuing notice, this Court directed that the vehicle as well as the goods be released, upon payment of the tax, in terms of the impugned notice. 5. The writ applicant availed the benefit of the interm-order passed by this Court and got the vehicle, along with the goods released on payment of the tax amount. The proceedings, as ....
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.... saying so is that for the purpose of release of the goods and conveyance detained while in transit for the contravention of the provisions of the Act or the rules, the section provides for release of such goods and conveyance on payment of the applicable tax and penalty or upon furnishing a security equivalent to the amount payable under clause (a) or clause (b) to Clause (1) of Section 129. Section 129(2) also provides that the provisions of sub-section (6) of Section 67 shall mutatis mutandis apply for detention and seizure of goods and conveyances. We quote Section 67(6) as under;"67(6) The goods so seized under sub-section(2) shall be released, on a provisional basis, upon execution of a bond and furnishing of a security, in such manne....
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.... only in the cases of prosecution and not for the purpose of Section 130 of the Act. What we are trying to convey is that in a given case, the contravention may be quite trivial or may not be of such a magnitude which by itself would be sufficient to take the view that the contravention was with the necessary intent to evade payment of tax. 102. In such circumstances, referred to above, we propose to take the view that in all cases, without any application of mind and without any justifiable grounds or reasons to believe, the authorities may not be justified to straightway issue a notice of confiscation under Section 130 of the Act. For the purpose of issuing a notice of confiscation under Section 130 of the Act at the threshold, I....
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....fied. The resultant effect of such issue of confiscation notice at the very threshold, without any application of mind or without there being any foundation for the same, renders Section 129 of the Act practically otiose. We take cognizance of the fact that once the notice under Section 130 of the Act is issued, then the vehicle is not released even if the owner of the goods is ready and willing to pay the tax and the penalty that may be determined under Section 129 of the Act. Such approach leads to unnecessary detention of the goods and the conveyance for an indefinite period of time. Therefore, what we are trying to convey is that all cases of contravention of the provisions of the Act or the Rules, by itself, may not attract the consequ....
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....ty to be formed is not subject to objective test. The language of Section 130 of the Act leaves no room for the relevance of an official examination as to the sufficiency of the ground on which the authority may act or proceed for the purpose of confiscation at the very threshold. But, at the same time, there must be material based on which alone the authority could form its opinion in good faith that it has become necessary to call upon the owner of the goods as well as the owner of the conveyance to show-cause as to why the goods and the conveyance should not be confiscated under Section 130 of the Act. The notice for the purpose of confiscation must disclose the materials, upon which, the belief is formed. It could be argued that it is n....