The court emphasized the intention of the authorities to facilitate rather than debar and de-recognize assessees from coming back into the Goods and Service Tax (GST) fold.

JUDGMENT

Vibhu Bakhru, J.

1. The petitioner has filed the present petition, inter alia, impugning an order dated 28.12.2020 passed by the Superintendent, Ward-90 whereby the petitioner's registration under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (hereafter `the Act') was cancelled. The said order was passed in furtherance of the proceedings commenced by the Show Cause Notice dated 15.12.2020. Admittedly, the allegation against the petitioner is that it had defaulted in filing the returns for more than six months.

2. The petitioner had allegedly, responded to the said Show Cause Notice by filing a reply dated 24.12.2020. The learned counsel for the petitioner states that the same has not been filed along with the petition as the copy of the same is not readily available. She states that the Advocate who was engaged by the petitioner at the material time has not supplied a copy of the same.

3. Mr. Singla, learned counsel for the respondent states that the case history does not reflect that the petitioner had filed any response to the Show Cause Notice dated 15.12.2020. He contends that possibly, there was a technical glitch and the reference to the reply dated 24.12.2020 has been automatically generated.

4. The counter affidavit filed by the respondent in this regard is somewhat inconsistent. Although the respondent has stated in one of the paragraphs that the petitioner had not submitted any response. The averments made by the petitioner, in another paragraph, to the effect that it had submitted a response to the Show Cause Notice has not been traversed. On the contrary, the same is accepted as a matter of record.

5. We are unable to accept that the petitioner has not filed a response to the Show Cause Notice, as the order dated 28.12.2020 expressly records as under:

"This has reference to your reply dated 24/12/2020 is response to the notice to show cause dated 15/12/2020".

6. There is no statement in the counter affidavit to the effect that the order dated 28.12.2020 suffers from any error as is now sought to be contended before this Court.

7. Although the impugned order dated 28.12.2020 refers to the petitioner's response to the Show Cause Notice, it does not indicate as to the contents thereof or reflects any discussion in respect of the petitioner's explanation.

8. In view of the above, we find merit in the petitioner's contention that the impugned order cannot be sustained.

9. Before concluding, it is also relevant to note that there is no dispute that the petitioner has filed its returns, albeit belatedly, and has also paid the tax and penalty in accordance with the Act.

10. This Court may also note that the Madras High Court in TVL. Suguna Cutpiece Center v. Appellate Deputy Commissioner (ST) (GST), SALEM, 2022 (61) G.S.T.L. 515 (Mad.), had also observed that it is not the intention of the authorities to debar and de-recognise assessees from coming back into the Goods and Service Tax (GST) fold. This was in the context of petitions where GST registrations of dealers had been cancelled and they had not availed of the alternate remedy seeking revocation of the cancellation orders within the time prescribed. The relevant observations made by the Madras High Court are set out below:

"206. It should be however remembered that the provisions of the Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 cannot be interpreted in such a manner, so as to debar an assessee, either from obtaining registration or reviving the lapsed/cancelled registration as such an interpretation would be not only contrary to the Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India but also in violation of Article 14 and Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

207. A reading of Notification No.52/2020-Central Tax, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, dated 24-06-2020, further indicates that returns could be filed belatedly on payment of late fee and waivers were also granted. Relevant portion of the said Notification reads as under:

(ii) after the third