2026 (4) TMI 1810

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.... out of the same facts and circumstances. 2. In W.P.No.8366 of 2025, the petitioner challenged the impugned Recovery Notice dated 30.10.2024 issued by the 1st respondent, wherein an amount was sought to be recovered pursuant to the Order-in-Original No.1/2020 dated 28.02.2020. 3. In W.P.No.6874 of 2026, the petitioner sought to lift the lien of Rs. 64,52,000/- marked against the petitioner's bank account bearing Account No.922010024838131 maintained with the 2nd Respondent Bank and further sought a direction to the 1st Respondent to refrain from recovering the dues payable by M/s. RU Information Technologies Pvt. Ltd. under Order-in- Original No. 1/2020 dated 28.02.2020 from the petitioner. 4. The Order-in-Original No.1/2020 dated ....

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....nty-five percent of the service tax determined to be payable at above. The benefit of reduced penalty shall be available only if the amount of such reduced penalty is also paid within Thirty days; 8(iv) Since, penalty under the provisions of Section 78 of FA, 1994 has been imposed, I do not impose any penalty under the provisions of Section 76 of the FA, 1994; The benefit of reduced penalty shall be available only if the amount of such reduced penalty is also paid within Thirty days; 8(iv) Since, penalty under the provisions of Section 78 of FA, 1994 has been imposed, I do not impose any penalty under the provisions of Section 76 of the FA, 1994; 8(v) M/s. Ru Information Technologies Private Limited are a....

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....ttled by the Division Bench of the Kerala High Court in K. Vinod Chandran vs. Ashok Menon [2019 (367) E.L.T. 166 (Ker.)] and by a Learned Single Judge of the Calcutta High Court in Roopchand Prasad vs. Union of India [2019 (365) E.L.T. 868 (Cal.)]. 9. The Learned Senior Standing Counsel also drew attention to Paragraphs 5 and 6 of the counter affidavit filed in W.P.No.8366 of 2025, wherein reference is made to the Guwahati High Court case in Lakshmi Narayan Sahu vs. Union of India, decided on 12.10.2018. 10. For the sake of convenience, paragraphs 5 and 6 of the counter affidavit in W.P.No.8366 of 2025 are reproduced below: "5. It is submitted in para A, that the petitioner has stated that Section 174 2(e) of the CGST Act 201....

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....ch person or the whole of the money when it is equal to or less than that amount; Therefore, the act of freezing of bank account of the petitioner is well within the limitations of the applicable law. Any person includes the individual of the company." 11. Although no counter-affidavit has been filed in W.P.No.6874 of 2026, I am inclined to dispose of these matters based on the counter-affidavit in W.P.No.8366 of 2025, as the relief sought in W.P.No.6874 of 2026 would be consequential to the order to be passed in W.P.No.8366 of 2025. 12. I have considered the arguments advanced by the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Senior Standing Counsel for R1. 13. There is no dispute that M/s. RU Information Technologies Priv....

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....n account of such person, to pay to the credit of the Central Government either forthwith upon the money becoming due or being held or at or within the time specified in the notice, not being before the money becomes due or is held, so much of the money as is sufficient to pay the amount due from such person or the whole of the money when it is equal to or less than that amount; (ii) every person to whom a notice is issued under this section shall be bound to comply with such notice, and, in particular, where any such notice is issued to a post office, banking company or an insurer, it shall not be necessary to produce any pass book, deposit receipt, policy or any other document for the purpose of any entry, endorsement or the like....

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....it were an arrear of land revenue." 17. Section 174(2)(e) of the CGST Act, 2017 only empowers the authorities under the respective GST enactments to enforce liabilities that have already crystallized. Therefore, the petitioner, at best, can be proceeded against only to the extent of Rs. 1 Lakh, which was imposed as a penalty under Section 78A of the Finance Act, 1994 by Order-in-Original No.1/2020 dated 28.02.2020. 18. It is submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner that the aforesaid penalty of Rs. 1 Lakh was already paid by the petitioner on 14.07.2023. A copy of the challan evidencing the payment is enclosed in the typed set of papers. 19. It is also noticed that the petitioner informed the 1st respondent of the afores....