2024 (12) TMI 728

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....the consent of the learned counsel for the parties. 3. The challenge in this petition is to the pre-show cause notice in Form DRC-01 A issued by respondent No. 2 to the petitioner under Section 73 (5) read with Rule 142 (1-A) of the State Goods and Services Tax Act (SGST). The petitioner also seeks a Writ of Mandamus upon respondent No. 3 to dispose of the petitioner's application dated 20 December 2023 seeking advance ruling inter alia on the taxability of the sale of land and buildings carried out pursuant to the Asset Purchase Agreement (APA) on merits. 4. Mr. Shroff learned senior counsel for the petitioner, expressed an apprehension that on account of the issuance of the pre-show cause notice dated 22 October 2024 respondent No. ....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

.... cause a copy thereof to be forwarded to the concerned officer and, if necessary, call upon him to furnish the relevant records: Provided that where any records have been called for by the Authority in any case, such records shall, as soon as possible, be returned to the said concerned officer. (2) The Authority may, after examining the application and the records called for and after hearing the applicant or his authorised representative and the concerned officer or his authorised representative, by order, either admit or reject the application: Provided that the Authority shall not admit the application where the question raised in the application is already pending or decided in any proceedings in the case of a....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....e jurisdictional officer after such pronouncement. 8. The proviso to Section 98 (2) states that the authority shall not admit the application where the question raised in the application is already pending or decided in any proceedings in the case of an applicant under any of the provisions of this Act. 9. The petitioners' application seeking an advance ruling was filed on 20 December 2023. At that stage, the question raised in the application was not already pending or decided in any proceedings in the case of the petitioner under any of the provisions of this Act. Therefore, the subsequent issue of pre-show cause notice dated 22 October 2024 will not bar or come in the way of respondent No. 3 deciding the petitioners' application da....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

....nce ruling has already been decided or is pending decision. Therefore, inquiry or investigation would not come within the ambit of the word "proceedings". 13. Be that as it may, in so far the present case is concerned, there is no dispute to the fact that the petitioner had filed the application for advance ruling on 11.05.2019. From the order dated 03.06.2022, it is evident that notice was issued to the petitioner by DGGI on 15.12.2021 much after filing of the application for advance ruling. In our considered opinion, the same cannot be a bar under the first proviso to sub-section (2) of Section 98 of the CGST Act and the question of petitioner informing the Authority that it was being enquired into did not arise because the appli....