Punjab and Haryana High Court Sets Aside IT Assessment Order Against UCWeb Mobile During Pendency Of DRP Proceedings

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has recently set aside the final assessment order passed against UCWeb Mobile Private Ltd. while its objections to the draft assessment order were pending before the Dispute Resolution Panel (DRP).The court held that the assessment violated the procedure prescribed under Section 144C of the Income-tax Act, which requires the Assessing Officer to pass the final assessment in conformity with directions issued by the DRP after considering the assessee's...

Punjab & Haryana High Court Directs Release Of JK Cement GST Refund Despite Revenue Appeal

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the Revenue to release a GST refund to JK Cement Works, holding that the company cannot be denied the refund merely because the Revenue has challenged the refund order before the Appellate Tribunal.The Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor passed the order on a petition filed by the cement manufacturer, which has a manufacturing unit at Jharli, Haryana.The company had secured an order allowing...

Punjab & Haryana HC Grants Bail To Two Accused In ₹197 Cr. GST Fraud Case, Holds Allegations Need Trial

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on 29 July granted regular bail to two accused in a Goods and Services Tax (GST) fraud case involving an alleged loss of around Rs. 197.39 crore to the government exchequer, holding that the allegations would have to be tested at trial where the case was largely based on documentary and electronic evidence and the prosecution witnesses were government officials. Justice Shalini Singh Nagpal passed the order in petitions arising from a complaint filed by the...

Director Cannot Be Prosecuted For Company's GST Offence Without Arraigning It: Punjab & Haryana High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that a director cannot be prosecuted for a company's GST offence without the company itself being arraigned as an accused. It quashed the criminal complaint against Manoj Bansal, a director of Nikita Industries Pvt. Ltd.Justice Shalini Singh Nagpal observed, “In the absence of M/s NIPL, being arraigned as an accused, the complaint against petitioner, a Director of the Company would not be maintainable. Unless the company is prosecuted, no vicarious...

Punjab & Haryana HC Denies Bail In ₹5.44 Crore Roselyn Square Case, Says Allegations Go Beyond Delay

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on 16 July held that allegations of cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust and conspiracy in connection with a real estate project go beyond a simple dispute over delayed possession or non-payment of assured returns. Justice Virinder Aggarwal dismissed the regular bail plea of Bhupinder Singla, Director of Robus Landcorp Pvt. Ltd., who was accused in the “Roselyn Square” commercial project case, noting that the investigating agency had collected prima...

Punjab and Haryana High Court Quashes ₹59.77 Lakh Stamp Duty Demand Initiated Beyond Limitation

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on 15 July held that proceedings for recovery of deficient stamp duty cannot be initiated after the expiry of the statutory limitation period, and that stamp duty liability must be determined based on the market value and nature of the property as they existed on the date of execution and registration of the sale deed. Justice Kuldeep Tiwari allowed a writ petition filed by Sandeep Singh and another and set aside the orders passed by the Collector and the...

Arbitral Award Can Be Executed Anywhere In India Where Decree Can Be Enforced: Punjab And Haryana High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has recently ruled that an arbitral award can be executed before any court where the judgment debtor's assets are located and is not restricted to the place where the award was passed. Dismissing a writ petition filed by the Union of India and others against Triveni Constructions, Justice Jasgurpreet Singh Puri observed that once an arbitral award is made, the arbitrator's mandate comes to an end and the award is not the decree of any particular court. ...

Bona Fide Classification Dispute Cannot Establish Tax Evasion Intent For Penalty: Punjab & Haryana HC

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on 20 July held that a bona fide classification dispute cannot, by itself, establish an intention to evade tax for imposing penalty under the Punjab Value Added Tax (PVAT) Act. A Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor allowed the appeal filed by Intex Technologies (India) Ltd. and set aside the penalty of Rs. 94,500 imposed under the PVAT Act for allegedly attempting to evade tax on mobile phone accessories....

Punjab &Haryana High Court Grants Bail To Ludhiana Trader Accused Of ₹9.66 Crore Fake GST ITC Fraud

The Punjab & Haryana High Court has granted regular bail to a Ludhiana-based businessman accused of fraudulently availing Input Tax Credit (ITC) of nearly ₹9.66 crore under the GST regime.It observed that continued incarceration was not justified when the prosecution case was based primarily on documentary evidence.Justice Surya Partap Singh, while deciding the bail plea of Rohit Kumar Gupta, proprietor of Maa Steel, Ludhiana, noted that the petitioner had remained in custody for more than...

IBC Moratorium Won't Extinguish Directors' Criminal Liability For Cheque Bounce: Punjab & Haryana HC

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on 20 July held that the moratorium under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) cannot extinguish a director's criminal liability for dishonour of cheques issued before commencement of insolvency proceedings against the company. Justice Manisha Batra dismissed a petition filed by Ajay Gupta seeking quashing of proceedings under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 (NI Act) for cheque dishonour, holding that subsequent insolvency and...

AI Tool Has No Sanction In Law To Prepare And Issue GST Show Cause Notice: Punjab & Haryana High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has recently quashed a GST show cause notice after holding that it had been issued primarily by relying upon an Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool, the use of which was not shown to have statutory sanction. The challenge was founded on a document annexed to the show cause notice and uploaded on the department's portal. The document referred to various AI-based aids and included suggestions to "Tighten this further with case-law citation paragraph-wise", convert...

Taxpayer Cannot Invoke Section 73(4B) Limitation After Delaying Service Tax Proceedings: P&H High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on 2 July held that the one year period prescribed under Section 73(4B) of the Finance Act, 1994 for passing adjudication orders in cases involving the extended period of limitation is not mandatory in all circumstances and cannot be invoked by a taxpayer whose own conduct caused delay in the proceedings. A Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor dismissed the appeal filed by Sanjay Verma, an architect and...