Natural justice bars GST recovery from a relative without prior liability determination and hearing, HC quashes bank attachment.

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....Recovery of GST dues from a deceased taxpayer's relative cannot be effected without prior determination that the relative is liable under Section 93, after notice and an opportunity of hearing. Where the petitioner and the deceased had separate GST registrations and distinct places of business, mere similarity of trade name was insufficient to justify automatic recovery. Freezing a bank account without adjudicatory process and without inviting objections also breached natural justice and due process, since attachment of bank property is a drastic measure requiring tangible material and a formed opinion. The HC held the recovery action suffered from a jurisdictional defect, quashed the attachment, directed de-freezing of the account, and left the Department free to proceed afresh in accordance with law.....