Nazeer Ahamed Abzer Ahamed vs The Deputy State Tax Officer- II

WP No. 44838 of 2026
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
DATED: 03-11-2026
CORAM
THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE KRISHNAN RAMASAMY
WP No. 44838 of 2026
CNR:{HCMA012634992026}
AND
WMP NO. 50323, 50324 & 50325 OF 2026
Nazeer Ahamed Abzer Ahamed
Proprietor, Tvl. RR Granites and Marbles,
2/2C, Sathy Covai Main Road, Rangasamudiram,
Sathyamangalam, Erode, Tamil Nadu-638 402
..Petitioner(s)
Vs
1. The Deputy State Tax Officer- II
(Also Known as Deputy Commercial Tax
Officer) Sathyamangalam,
Erode, Tamil Nadu.
2. The State Tax Officer
Sathyamangalam Assessment Circle,
Sathyamangalam, Erode,
Tamil Nadu-638 402
..Respondent(s)
Prayer:
Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, praying
for issuance of Certiorari, calling for the records on the files of the 1st
Respondent herein in Reference No. GSTN 33BPSPA2176R2ZB dated
23.04.2024, Order under section 73 of the TNGST Act, 2017 and the summary
of the order in FORM GST DRC-07 both dated 23.04.2024 issued in Reference
No. ZD3304241769370 and consequential order passed in FORM GST DRC-08
in Reference No. GSTN 33BPSPA2176R2ZB dated 17.05.2024 and
Rectification order under section 161 of the TNGST Act, 2017 dated
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WP No. 44838 of 2026
17.05.2024 issued in Reference No. ZD330524128116Q for the tax period
2018-19 and quash the same
For Petitioner(s): Mr.A.N.R.Jayaprathap
For Respondent(s): Mr.B.Sivaraman, GA
Order
This writ petition has been filed challenging the order dated 23.04.2024
passed by the respondent.
2. Mr.B.Sivaraman, learned Government Advocate, takes notice on behalf
of the respondent.
3. By consent of the parties, the main writ petition is taken up for disposal
at the admission stage itself.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that in this case, all
notices/communications were uploaded by the respondent in the GST common
portal. Since the petitioner had failed to view the portal, they were not aware of
the said notices, due to which, they failed to file their reply within the time.
Under these circumstances, the impugned order came to be passed by the
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WP No. 44838 of 2026
respondent without providing any opportunity of personal hearing to the
petitioner. Hence, this petition has been filed.
5. Further, he would submit that the petitioner is ready and willing to pay
10% of the disputed tax amount to the respondent. Hence, he requests this Court
to grant an opportunity to the petitioner to present their case before the
respondent by setting aside the impugned order.
6. On the other hand, the learned counsel appearing for the respondent
would submit that the respondent had uploaded the notices in the GST Online
Portal. But the petitioner failed to avail the said opportunity. Further, he has
fairly admitted that no opportunity of personal hearing was provided to the
petitioner prior to the passing of impugned order. Therefore, he requested this
Court to remit the matter back to the respondent, subject to the payment of 10%
of the disputed tax amount by the petitioner.
7. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the respondent and
also perused the materials available on record.
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WP No. 44838 of 2026
8. In the case on hand, it is evident that the show cause notice was
uploaded on the GST Portal Tab. According to the petitioner, he was not aware
of the issuance of the said show cause notice issued through the GST Portal and
the original of the said show cause notice was not furnished to them. In such
circumstances, this Court is of the view that the impugned assessment order
came to be passed without affording any opportunity of personal hearing to the
petitioner, confirming the proposals contained in the show cause notice.
9. No doubt, sending notice by uploading in portal is a sufficient service,
but, the Officer, who is sending the repeated reminders, despite the fact that no
response from the petitioner to the show cause notices etc., should have applied
his/her mind and explored the possibility of sending notices by way of other
modes prescribed in Section 169 of the GST Act, which are also the valid mode
of service under the Act, otherwise it will not be an effective service, rather, it
would only amount to fulfilling the empty formalities. Merely passing an ex
parte order by fulfilling the empty formalities will not serve any useful purpose
and the same will only pave way for multiplicity of litigations, not only wasting
the time of the Officer concerned, but also the precious time of the Appellate
Authority/Tribunal and this Court as well.
10. Thus, when there is no response from the tax payer to the notice sent
through a particular mode, the Officer who is issuing notices should strictly
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WP No. 44838 of 2026
explore the possibilities of sending notices through some other mode as
prescribed in Section 169(1) of the Act, preferably by way of RPAD, which
would ultimately achieve the object of the GST Act. Therefore, this Court finds
that there has been lack of efforts in exploring the available opportunities to
serve the notices/orders etc., effectively on the petitioner.
11. Further, it was submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner that
the petitioner is ready and willing to pay 10% of the disputed tax amount to the
respondent. In such view of the matter, this Court is inclined to set aside the
impugned order dated 23.04.2024 passed by the respondent. Accordingly, this
Court passes the following order:-
(i) The impugned order dated 23.04.2024 is set aside
and the matter is remanded to the respondent for fresh
consideration on condition that the petitioner shall pay 10% of
the disputed tax amount to the respondent, within a period of
four weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.
The setting aside of the impugned order will take effect from
the date of payment of the said amount.
(ii) The petitioner shall file their reply/objection along
with the required documents, if any, within a period of three
weeks from the date of payment of amount as stated above.
(iii) On filing of such reply/objection by the
petitioner, the respondent shall consider the same and issue a
14 days clear notice, by fixing the date of personal hearing, to
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WP No. 44838 of 2026
the petitioner and thereafter, pass appropriate orders on
merits and in accordance with law, after hearing the
petitioner, as expeditiously as possible.
(iv) Considering the fact that the impugned order
itself has been set aside, this Court is of the opinion that the
attachment made on the bank account of the petitioner cannot
survive any longer. As a sequel, the concerned Bank is
directed to de-freeze the bank account of the petitioner,
immediately upon the production of a copy of this order
along with the proof with regard to the payment made by the
petitioner as stated above.
12. With the above directions, this writ petition is disposed of. No costs.
Consequently, the miscellaneous petitions in WMP.Nos.50324 & 50325 of
2026 are closed. The miscellaneous petition in WMP.No.50323 of 2026, which
has been filed to dispense with the production of original assessment order, is
ordered.
03-11-2026
Index: Yes/No
Speaking/Non-speaking order
Neutral Citation: Yes/No
nsa
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WP No. 44838 of 2026
To
1. The Deputy State Tax Officer- II
(Also Known as Deputy Commercial Tax
Officer) Sathyamangalam,
Erode, Tamil Nadu.
2. The State Tax Officer
Sathyamangalam Assessment Circle,
Sathyamangalam, Erode,
Tamil Nadu-638 402
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WP No. 44838 of 2026
KRISHNAN RAMASAMY J.
nsa
WP No. 44838 of 2026
AND
WMP NO. 50323, 50324 & 50325 OF 2026
03-11-2026
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