TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2023 (9) TMI 1127
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....n 09.03.2023 by the Additional Commissioner of State Tax, Unit-9, Ahmedabad (the respondent No.2), in connection with the alleged offences punishable under Section 132(1)(a),(b) of the Gujarat Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (in short referred to herein as 'GST Act, 2017) and under Section 120(B) of the IPC. 3. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. N.D.Nanavaty assisted by learned advocate Mr. Yatin Soni for the applicant states that the respondent No. 2 filed Criminal Case No. 41374 of 2023 was filed against the present applicant and the learned Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Ahmedabad, by an order dated 06.05.2023, order to file a complaint punishable under Section 132(1)(a),(b) of the Gujarat Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and under Section 120(B) of the IPC. 4. Thereafter, the applicant has filed bail application before the learned Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Ahmedabad, by an order dated 11.05.2023, rejected the bail application. Thereafter, the learned advocate filed application for regular bail before the learned City Civil and Sessions Court, Ahmedabad being Criminal....
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....efrauding the Government's revenue and that is why Section 120(b) of I.P.C. added in the complaint. As no other persons have been shown as accused in the complaint and therefore, allegation with regard to conspiracy is baseless. The presence of the applicant is not necessary for the purpose of investigation as the case is pending for pre charge evidence as provided under Sec. 244 of the Cr.P.C. Even when the applicant was in jail, the Investigating Officer has consequently for three days recorded the statement of the applicant from the jail and that too, after obtaining permission of the concerned Court. Under instructions, he further states that after the Gujarat Goods and Service Tax Act, 2047 and Central Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017 came into force, more than 100 cases are registered in Ahmedabad City and till date, not a single case is finally decided. That the offence under Section 132 of the GST Act, 2017 provides maximum punishment of five years and further the said offence is a compoundable offence as provided in Section 138 of the GST Act at any stage and further pre-charge evidence is required to be recorded and therefore, no possibility to get over near future. In pre....
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....ntary evidence, which is seized by the complainant and are part of GST portal and all the transactions are recorded in GST Portal and are in possession of the complainant and therefore, there is no possibilities of tampering with the evidence That the offences are triable by the learned Magistrate and therefore, considering the above all, the present applicant may be enlarged on bail on any suitable conditions. 7. Learned Additional Public Prosecutor Mr. Tirthraj Pandya for the respondent - State submits that the application for regular is baseless and requires to be rejected as the present applicant has played active role in the offence and the applicant is main accused. That the present applicant has issued bogus bills without inward and without supplying the goods and for that act, The Government has to suffer huge financial loss and accordingly, he has seriously affected the economy of the country. He has submitted that three persons had taken GST Registration number under the instruction of the present applicant and the applicant had taken all the business dealing decisions of the three firms and in fact, without delivering the goods and by issuing bogus bills, he has passed ....
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....minal Procedure, 1973. The applicant is still in jail. Thus as per circumstances, summons would have been served in jail. The trial would begin on the recording of the evidence from the side of the Department. There is no time bound procedure after the cognizance of the offence. Further, the trial will take its own time to conclude. 9. In the case of Sanjay Chandra v. Central Bureau of Investigation reported in (2012) 1 SCC 40, a reference has been made to observe that the important factor while deciding the bail application certainly would be to take into consideration, the delay in concluding the trial. 10. Section 132(1)(i) (Punishment for certain Offences) provides for punishment as under :- "[Whoever commits, or causes to commit and retain the benefits arising out of, any of the following offences], namely :- (a) supplies any goods or services or both without issue of any invoice, in violation of the provisions of the Act or the rules made thereunder, with the intention to evade tax; (b) issues any invoice or bill without supply of goods or services or both in violation of the provisions of this Act, or the rule made thereunder leading to wrongful availment or utilis....