TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (5) TMI 916
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....service and his principal place of business is at Tengakhat Girls School, Tengakhat, Niz Tengakhat, Dibrugarh, Assam. The petitioner got himself registered under the Central Goods and Services Tax [CGST] Act, 2017 ['the CGST Act', for short]/State Goods and Services Tax [SGST] Act, 2017 ['the SGST Act', for short]. It is stated that when the petitioner applied for registration, the petitioner was issued a Registration Certificate in Form GST REG-06 with Registration no. 18CPYPG5749B1ZF w.e.f. 07.03.2022. 3. The petitioner was issued the Show Cause Notice on 12.02.2025 by the Proper Officer asking him to show cause as to why the Registration issued to him under the CGST Act should not be cancelled. The petitioner was thereby, asked to furnish a Reply within thirty days from the date of service of the Show Cause Notice. The petitioner was also directed to appear before the Proper Officer at 11-00 on 12.03.2025. It was further mentioned that if the petitioner would fail to furnish a Reply within the stipulated date or would fail to appear for personal hearing on the appointed date and time, the case would be decided ex-parte on the basis of the available records and on merits. By t....
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.... 8. I have considered the submissions of the learned counsel for the parties and have also gone through the materials brought on record, apart from the relevant provisions of the CGST Act, 2017 and the CGST Rules, 2017 ['the CGST Rules', for short] on which the learned counsel for the parties have relied on. 9. Section 39[1] of the CGST Act inter-alia requires a registered person to furnish a return for every calendar month or part thereof, electronically, of inward and outward supplies of goods or services or both, input tax credit availed, tax payable, tax paid and such other particulars, in such form and manner, and within such time, as may be prescribed. Rule 61[1] of the CGST Rules has prescribed the Form and manner of furnishing of return electronically through the common portal either directly or through a notified Facilitation Centre, as specified under sub-section [1] of Section 39 of the CGST Act. 10. As per Section 29[2][c], an officer, duly empowered, may cancel the GST registration of a person from such date, including any retrospective date, as he deems fit, where any registered person, has not furnished returns for such continuous tax period as may be prescr....
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.... FORM GST REG-20. [5] The provisions of sub-rule [3] shall, mutatis mutandis, apply to the legal heirs of a deceased proprietor, as if the application had been submitted by the proprietor himself. 12. Sub-rule [2] of Rule 21A of the CGST Rules has empowered the Proper Officer also to suspend the registration of a person with effect from a date to be determined by him, pending the completion of the proceedings for completion for cancellation for registration under Rule 22, where the Proper Officer has reasons to believe that the registration of the person is liable to be cancelled under Section 29 or under Rule 21. The Show Cause Notice dated 12.02.2025 was mentioned about Rule 22[1] / Rule 21A. 13. Sub-rule [1] of Rule 22 of the CGST Rules has inter-alia prescribed that where the Proper Officer has reasons to believe that the registration of a person is liable to be cancelled under Section 29 of the CGST Act, he is required to issue a notice to such person in FORM GST REG-17, requiring him to show cause, within a period of seven working days from the date of the service of such notice, as to why his registration shall not be cancelled. Then, the registered person can....
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.....2025, has not assigned any reason. The Proper Officer in the Order dated 17.04.2025 has recorded that 'This has reference to the show cause dated 12.02.2025. Whereas, no reply to the show cause notice has been submitted; and whereas, the undersigned based on record available with this office is of the opinion that your registration is liable to be cancelled for the following reason[s] : 1. Others. Remarks : Rule 22[1] / sub-rule [2A] of Rule 21A. 18. It has been laid down in sub-rule [3] of Rule 22 of the CGST Rules that the Officer has to pass an Order under Section 29[2] of the CGST Act read with Rule 22[3] of the CGST Rules in FORM GST REG-19. The contents of Form GST REG-19 clearly indicate that specific reasons are to be assigned for cancellation of an assessee's GST registration. 19. Under the GST regime a registered assessee is required to pay the statutory dues under the CGST Act or the SGST Act, as the case may be, or both. These statutory dues are required to be paid by all the assessees, who are registered under the GST regime, mandatorily. Such payments of statutory dues contribute towards the State Exchequer. If an assessee like the petitioner is not included wi....
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....ularly, when the decision is likely to affect the right of the person concerned. Recording of reason is also prima facie suggestive of conscious application of mind on the part of the authority. The obligation to record reasons is a possible check against arbitrary action on the part of the adjudicating authority invested with the statutory power to take a decision which is likely to affect the right of the person concerned. When the statute itself contains a prescription to record reasons in the decision, absence of reasons in the decision falls short of prescription and would be in violation of the prescription and thus, illegal. A look at FORM GST REG-19 also goes to substantiate that the Proper Officer is obligated to record his reason[s] for taking the action of cancellation of GST Registration. 24. Thus, from every standpoint, the impugned Order dated 17.04.2025 is not a speaking order. As such, the impugned Order dated 17.04.2025 is found to be one which is passed without any application of mind. For the afore-stated reasons, the impugned Order dated 17.04.2025 cannot stand the scrutiny of law and is liable to be set aside and quashed. 25. A submission has been made th....