2024 (2) TMI 180

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....ri.P.G.Jayasankar, learned Senior Standing Counsel for the respondent Nos.2 & 3. 2. The petitioner is a State Government entity registered under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013 and has been granted certificate under Section 12AA of the Income Tax Act, 1961. As per the averments in the writ petition, 99.9998% shares of the petitioner are held by the State Government. The petitioner is controlled by the State Government, inasmuch as the Secretary of the General Education Department is the Chairperson of petitioner's Board of Directors. In fact, it is a Special Purpose Vehicle, which has been set up for providing IT infrastructure in the Government owned and aided Schools in the State of Kerala. It is also said that the petitioner&#3....

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....ernment Schools with 45000 class rooms and hitech lab project in 9941 primary schools. The petitioner received funds in the form of grants from KIIFB under the mandate of Section 3(2) r/w Section 3(4) of the KIIFB Act, 1999. Such grants are utilised by the petitioner for purchasing goods for the purposes of upgrading infrastructure in Government schools at no cost to the public. The petitioner is a registered dealer under the provisions of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act/State Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 ('CGST/SGST Act', for short). 5. The petitioner has approached this Court in the present writ petition impugning the show cause notice bearing No.5/2023-24 GST (ADC) dated 18.9.2023 in Ext.P13 on the ground that the pet....

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....personal hearing, and thereafter, the present writ petition has been filed. 7. The learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner submits that the show cause notice would show that the assessing authority has predetermined the issue of levying tax as stated in the show cause notice without considering the reply to the show cause notice and exemption notifications. He submits that though the petitioner do not supply the goods and services as alleged to the General Education Department of the State Government, they retain the ownership and in fact, they only maintain the computers and other hardwares installed in Government Schools and take insurance for the same and receive only maintenance charges for the same. It is also submitted without prej....

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....d by it. A detailed investigation was carried out and on the basis of the evidence and materials collected during the investigation, the petitioner has been issued show cause notice. Every material adverse to the petitioner has been supplied to it to enable the petitioner to file its detailed reply, which the petitioner has filed. The assessing authority will consider the reply and will afford adequate opportunity of hearing to the petitioner. If the petitioner's supplies are exempted, the show cause notice would be dropped, but the assessing authority is to be satisfied on all aspects that the petitioner's supplies are exempted from payment of GST. At this stage when the adjudication proceedings are going on, the petitioner's a....