TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2024 (3) TMI 168
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....of 2017-18 to 2022-23 without actual movement of goods on the basis of forged and fictitious documents of supplies were procured from various non-existing firms i.e. Santosh Enterprises, Sandip Metal, Honey Metal and Rajpal & sons. Further after implementation of e-way bill system on the portal from the year 2018-19 till the month of May, 2023, e-way bills worth Rs. 17,33,83,966 have been cancelled by the applicant's firm without any valid reasons or reasonable explanation. It has been further averred that on verification of all those selling firms, either the firms were found non-existing or have not doing any business. It has been further averred that the details of the trucks which were used for transportation of goods, have not been found in toll plazas situated on the alleged rout of transportation. 4. Mr. Anoop Trivedi, learned Senior Counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the present crime. He further submitted that the applicant is a proprietor of a registered firm which has been duly registered under the GST Act and registration is still valid and same has not been cancelled so far. He further submitted that all....
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....urther submitted that on the one hand neither any adjudication order has been passed for quantifying the excess claim of input tax credit, nor any adjudication order nor reversal of input tax credit nor any power has been exercised under Section 69 read with Section 132 of the Act. 8. Mr. Trivedi further submitted that the present FIR has not been lodged by any officers of G.S.T. department but by the Incharge Inspector, Special Tax Force rendering G.S.T. Act as redundant. He further submitted that on perusal of the FIR, it clearly shows that all contents of notice issued under Section 70 of the Act and notice issued under Section 74 of the Act are almost replica of the contents of the FIR. Basis of initiation of the proceedings as well as arrest of the applicant is almost similar to the facts mentioned in the notices under Section 70 and 74 of the Act. Copy of the notices issued under Section 70 and Section 74 of the Act has been annexed as Annexure No. 7 and 9 respectively, to this bail application. 9. In support of his contention, Mr. Trivedi has relied upon the bail orders passed by this Court in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 21848 of 2022 (Paras Jain @ Rohan Jain Vs. U....
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....ffixed on the windscreen of the truck during movement of goods. The said RFID tags were not being used by the transporters on their trucks which has been allegedly shown for use of transportation of goods of the applicant firm. 12. On a pointed query put to Mr. Goel whether there is any notification issued by the GST department for mandatory use of RFID tag, he refers para 13 of counter affidavit as well as Annexure no. CA-3 where notification dated 7.9.2018 has been filed making it compulsory to get the RFID tag affixed on the windscreen of the vehicle used for transportation of goods. He further submitted that once the trucks allegedly used for transportation of goods do not have RFID tag, the supply of goods cannot be treated to be genuine and correct. He further submitted that various statements were recorded and copy of few statements have been annexed as Annexure no. CA-2 of the counter affidavit showing that at the time of survey selling firms were non-existing. 13. Mr. Goel further submitted that huge amount / value of e-way bill has been cancelled by the applicant's firm but no explanation whatsoever has been submitted by them till date, which itself shows that no moveme....
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....Alias Bachcha Rai; 2017 (13) SCC; Nimmgadda Vs. Central Bureau of Investigation; 2013 (7) SCC; Serious Fraud Investigation Office Vs. Nitin Johari and Another; 2019 (9) SCC; State of Gujarat Vs. Mohanlal Jitamali Porwal and Another; 1987 (2) SCC, on the point of rejection of bail relating to economic offenses. 18. He further placed reliance upon the judgment of the Hon'ble Apex Court in the cases of Pawan Alias Tamatar Vs. Ram Prakash Pandey and another; 2002 (9) SCC; Ram Pratap Yadav Vs. Mitra Sen Yadav and another; 2003 (1) SCC; P. Chidambaram Vs. Directorate of Enforcement; 2019 (9) SCC, Munni Lakshmi Vs. Narendra Babu and another; 2023 SCC OnLine SC; Sunil Kumar Vs. State of Bihar and another; 2022 (3) SCC, in which it has been held that entire material collected by the Investigating Agency to be considered at the time of consideration of bail application. 19. Rebutting to the aforesaid submissions, Mr. Anoop Trivedi, learned Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of applicant has relied upon the judgment of Hon'ble the Apex Court in the case of P. Chidambaram Vs. C.B.I. (2020) 13 SCC 337 in which it has been held that while deciding the bail application an elaborate examinat....
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....ment of input tax credit with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years and fine. It further provides that every second or thereof all the offense committed by the registered person shall be punishable. Further Section 138 of GST Act provides the compounding all the offense committed by the registered person being caused after payment of tax and interest to the amount of such wrong availment of input tax credit. 24. Taking into consideration the provisions of law and the fact that the Commissioner is empowered to recover the due amount and propose for abating the proceedings and as the trial will take its own time to conclude, this Court finds this to be a fit case where discretion could be exercised in favour of the applicant. 25. Hon'ble the Supreme Court in the case of Sanjay Chandra Vs. C.B.I. (2012) 1 SCC 40 has held that seriousness of the offenses alone is not conclusive of the applicant's entitlement to bail. 26. Keeping in view the nature of the offence, argument advanced on behalf of the parties, evidence on record regarding complicity of the accused, larger mandate of the Article 21 of the Constitution of India and the dictum of Apex Court in the case of ....