TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (7) TMI 1753
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....r the applicant, Sri Krishna Agarawal, learned counsel for the opposite party no.1/Union of India and Sri Dhananjay Awasthi, learned counsel for the opposite party no.2/CGST and perused the material on record. 3. This bail application under Section 483 of B.N.S.S. has been filed by the applicant Alice Lee @ Li Tengli, seeking enlargement on bail during trial in connection with Case No. 40 of 2025, under Sections 132(1)(d), 132(1)(e), 132(1)(f), 132(1)(l), 132(1)(i) of the CGST, Act, 2017, registered at Police Station CGST Commissionerate, District Gautam Budh Nagar. 4. On 13.01.2026 the following order was passed by this Court: "1. List revised. 2. Heard Sri Jitendra Kumar Srivastava, learned counsel for the applicant, Sri Dhananjay Awasthi, learned counsel for the opposite party no. 2/Central Goods & Services Tax Commissionerate, Gautam Buddha Nagar (Anti Evasion), Sri Shikhar Khare, Advocate, holding brief of Sri Krishna Agarawal, learned counsel for the opposite party no. 1/Union of India and perused the record. 3. Admittedly the applicant is a Chinese national. She is in jail since 26.8.2025. This is an application for bail under Sec....
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....ing agency if the criminal case/proceedings is pending investigation. Further, said Entry Visa (X-Misc) can be extended six months at a time. The foreign national while applying/registering for such a visa gets entered into the system of the immigration department and it becomes easy to track the movements of such a foreign national. It is pertinent to mention here that this visa is granted to such foreign national only for the sole purpose of facing criminal charge, and the benefit of no other activity like employment, business etc. is allowed/ can be availed on such a visa. The grant of said Entry Visa (X-Misc) by the concerned Department does not tantamount to regularization of the earlier overstay of such foreign nationals. 9. In respect of a foreign national against whom one or more cases are pending, it is humbly submitted/apprised that visa applications of such foreign nationals were being kept on hold or denied as per guidelines of Bureau of Immigration pertaining to undertrial foreign nationals seeking visa services vide their Office Memorandum dated 02.03.2023. The applicant foreign national had applied for visa extension on 06.08.2023 which was denied by this of....
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....inet, Visual Display Unit comes into existence as manufactured goods which falls under Chapter Sub Heading 85287219 attracting GST @ 28% but the taxpayer is dispatching the goods by paying GST @ 18% and thereby causing a short paying of GST @ 10% on this count. 9. The evasion of tax on account of misclassification of mis-declaration of goods of 10% was calculated for financial years 2019-20 to 2024-25 to be Rs. 88,80,751/-. The enquiry concluded and the applicant was arrested subsequent to which the said complaint was filed. The husband of the applicant preferred a writ petition before the Apex Court numbered as Writ Petition (Criminal) No. 369 of 2025 (XU XUNFU Vs. Union of India and another) which was disposed of vide order dated 22.09.2025. The Apex Court in para 20 and 21 of the same directed that the petitioner should immediately apply for bail before the court concerned in accordance with law and further directed that if once any bail application is filed, the court concerned shall look into it expeditiously on its own merits in accordance with law, without being influenced in any way by the facts that the Court declined to entertain the Article 32 petition. The orde....
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....urther in this regard, as it may cause prejudice the petitioner as and when she prays for bail. 14. We are examining this petition from a limited angle and that is whether her detention as on date could be said to be unlawful i.e. violative of Article 21 of the Constitution. 15. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would vehemently submit that the very arrest of his client could be said to be illegal as the same is in breach or violation of the principles enunciated by this Court in its decision rendered in the case of ?Arnesh Kumar vs. State of Bihar & Anr.? Reported in (2014) 8 SCC 273. 16. He would further submit that the grounds of arrest furnished could also be termed as just an eye wash. 17. In such circumstances, he submitted that the arrest of the petitioner be declared as illegal and she may be ordered to be released forthwith. 18. On the other hand, Ms. Bhati, the learned ASG would submit that the investigation is at a nascent stage. There is some prima facie material on the basis of which the petitioner was arrested. She would submit that the arrest cannot be termed in any manner as illegal or violative of Article ....
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....ears. (vii) Co-accused Vinay Kumar has been granted bail by a co-ordinate Bench of this Court vide order dated 01.12.2025 passed in Crl. Misc. Bail Application No. 37430 of 2025 (Vinay Kumar Vs. Union of India and another), copy of the said order has been placed before the Court which is annexure R.A.1 to the rejoinder affidavit on behalf of the applicant dated 10.12.2025. The same reads as under: "1. Counter affidavit filed by DGGI is taken on record. 2. Heard Sri Satya Prakash Mishra, learned counsel for the applicant and Sri Dhananjay Awasthi, learned counsel appearing for the DGGI and Ms. Alka Singh, Advocate holding brief of Shri Saumitra Singh, learned counsel for Union of India. 3. The instant application has been filed seeking release of the applicant on bail in Case Crime No. 40 of 2025 under Sections 132(1)(d), 132(1)(e), 132 (1) (f), 132 (1) (I), 132 (1) (i) of CGST Act 2017 Police Station CGST Commissionerate District Gautam Budh Nagar. 4. Learned counsel for applicant submits as per allegation applicant was one of the Director of M/s Tentech LED Display Pvt Ltd and he along with other accused committed evasion of GST in tune....
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.... completion of trial, in any event, would take some time. Needless to mention that the petitioner if released on bail, is required to adhere to the conditions to be imposed and diligently participate in the trial. Further, in a case of the present nature, the evidence to be tendered by the respondent would essentially be documentary and electronic. The ocular evidence will be through official witnesses, due to which there can be no apprehension of tampering, intimidating or influencing. Therefore, keeping all these aspects in perspective, in the facts and circumstances of the present case, we find it proper to grant the prayer made by the petitioner." 14. Further Apex Court recently in the case of Vineet Jain vs. Union of India MANU/SCOR/38321/2025 while granting bail to accused under the provisions of C.G.S.T. Act observed as:- "......The offences alleged against the appellant are under Clauses (c), (f) and (h) of Section 132(1) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The maximum sentence is of 5 years with fine. A charge-sheet has been filed. The appellant is in custody for a period of almost 7 months. The case is triable by a Court of a Judicial Magist....
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...., further that during the course of investigation, the role of the applicant has prima facie figured for tax evasion, para 12 of the order has been placed before the Court. (ii) Para 4 of the counter affidavit has been placed to submit that the applicant is a habitual offender and was previously arrested by the ATS, Lucknow in some Hawala case of which FIR was lodged in the year 2021 and the applicant was granted bail on 03.02.2023 but still the applicant indulged in the present incident which is misuse of liberty of bail granted to her. (iii) Judgements of the Apex Court have been placed while placing para 27 of the counter affidavit to submit that the present case is a case relating to an economic offence and time and again it has been held and stated that economic offences constitute a class apart and need to be visited in a different approach in matters of bail. The following judgments have been placed before the Court in the case of Ram Narain Popli Vs. Central Bureau of Investigation : Crl. Appeal No. 1097 of 1999, decided on 14.01.2003, Nimmagadda Prasad Vs. C.B.I., Hyderabad : AIR 2013 SC 2831, Serious Fraud Investigation Vs. Nittin Jokari : Crl. Appeal No....
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....e court on every date and will not delay the disposal of trial in any manner whatsoever. (iii) The applicant shall file an undertaking to the effect that she shall not seek any adjournment on the date fixed for evidence when the witnesses are present in court. In case of default of this condition, it shall be open for the trial court to treat it as abuse of liberty of bail and pass orders in accordance with law. (iv) The applicant will not misuse the liberty of bail in any manner whatsoever. In case, the applicant misuses the liberty of bail during trial and in order to secure her presence proclamation under section 84 BNSS, 2023 may be issued and if applicant fails to appear before the court on the date fixed in such proclamation, then, the trial court shall initiate proceedings against her, in accordance with law, under section 209 BNS, 2023. (v) The applicant shall remain present, in person, before the trial court on dates fixed for (1) opening of the case, (2) framing of charge and (3) recording of statement under Section 351 BNSS, 2023. If in the opinion of the trial court absence of the applicant is deliberate or without sufficient cause, then it sh....
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....entioned the names of the Hon'ble Judges of the Apex Court Presiding over the Bench in the said matter. This system of mentioning the names of Hon'ble Judges while giving reference to the judgments is totally uncalled for. 20. The deponent of the counter affidavit is a responsible Officer who has disclosed that he is posted as Assistant Commissioner, CGST, Gautam Budh Nagar who and even the Court concerned ceased with the bail application are directed to be cautious in future for the said count and ensure that names of the Hon'ble Judges are not mentioned while referring the judgments and it is only the names of the parties, date of decision, the details of the case/citation and the relevant text are relevant which needs to be quoted and not the names of the Hon'ble Judges. 21. This Court even came across a similar situation in a case Priyank Kumar Vs. State of U.P. and others ; Matters Under Article 227 No. 15555 of 2025, decided on 27.01.2026 and thus directed the said order to be brought to the knowledge of the Presiding Officer concerned for being cautious in future. In the present matter also, the Presiding Officer who has decided the bail app....
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.... nos. 15.7 & 15.8 of the order granting bail to her. It is submitted that thus the same be modified in the interest of justice. 7. Vide order dated 07.07.2026 learned counsel for the opposite party no.2 on his prayer was granted time to seek instructions to the present modification application dated 23.03.2026. Today he has produced before the Court a communication received from the In-charge Legal Cell, Office of FRRO Delhi stating therein that Visa granted on 29.04.2026 to the applicant is valid till 28.10.2026 but with remark "No Departure Allowed Without Exit Permit". It states X-Misc. visa has been granted to her which is a visa granted to foreign nationals who are involved in criminal cases and subsequently released on bail and whose presence is required to attend court proceedings in India. The said communication reads as under:- "May kindly refer to the trailing e-mail in the subject mentioned matter. In addition to the previous comments, it is stated that the Chinese national, namely Alice Li Tengli, holder of PP no.-EQ6115951 & E94984666 had applied for her visa extension in this office vide her application no. UP1100267926 dated 09.04.2026. Upon her applicati....