TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (8) TMI 1587
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.... K. VINOD CHANDRAN, J. Leave granted. 2. The appellant is concerned with the Show Cause Notice (SCN) issued for three financial years, viz: 2018-2019 to 2020- 2021, purportedly in pursuance of an objection raised on an audit by the office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. The SCN is termed to be one under Section 74 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (the CGST Act). The appellant's contention is that there is no allegation of fraud, willful misstatement or suppression of facts, bereft of which there can be no invocation of Section 74, where there is an extended period of five years, as distinguished from a period of three years available under Section 73. It is also contended that the Assessing Officer it....
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....ancial year relevant to such proceedings, it is Section 44 which provides for furnishing of annual return and sub-section (1) requires the annual return to be furnished within such time and in such form and in such manner as is prescribed. The Goods & Service Tax Rules, 2017 by Rule 80 prescribes the furnishing of an annual return for every financial year as specified under Section 44 electronically, on or before the 31st of December, following the end of such financial year. Relevant in the above case are the financial years 2018-2019, 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. As per the provisions above noted, the annual returns have to be filed on or before 31.12.2018, 31.12.2020 and 31.12.2021 respectively. 6. The CGST Act having come into force on 0....
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....t Petition was disposed of with directions, inter alia providing for exclusion of limitation for the period between 15.03.2020 to 28.02.2022. Hence, the said exclusory period coming within the limitation period of three years had to be excluded and the limitation pushed further to that extent. As noticed above the last date for furnishing the annual returns of 2018-2019, 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 as per the various notifications under Section 44 were respectively 31.12.2020, 31.03.2021 and 28.02.2022. The limitation ought to have expired at three years, respectively on 31.12.2023, 31.03.2024 and 28.02.2025. One year and two months within the period of limitation of 2018-2019 and eleven months within the period of three years limitation of 201....
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....025, that the SCN has been transferred to 'call book' meaning thereby 'kept in abeyance'. It was also intimated that the Department has contested the issue raised as an audit objection, before the Public Accounts Committee. 10. Later, a fresh notice was issued on 01.07.2025, reviving the earlier notice and proposing a protective demand since the proceedings are time bound under the GST law, there being no such measure of protective assessment statutorily permitted under the GST Act. 11. At the outset we have to notice that the proceedings under Section 73/74 can be initiated only on the satisfaction of the Assessing Officer. Even if observations/objections are made on audit, the Assessing Officer should enter his satisfaction before a....
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....n an extended limitation period is provided for recovering an excess benefit availed, short payment or excess refund, from the assessee, especially when the allegation is of fraud/willful misrepresentation/suppression. The foundational facts which led to the inference arrived at of fraud/willful misrepresentation/ suppression should be evident from the notice itself. The mere employment of such words will not indicate an application of mind, upon which alone the satisfaction can be arrived at. The words are not to be mechanically recited in the notice to enable recovery outside the normal limitation provided under the statute 15. In the facts of the above case, we do not find any such factual facts having been stated to make out a case o....