Bona fide bereavement warrants setting aside GST adjudication orders and restoring the opportunity to respond.

The petitioner, a registered firm, challenged adjudication orders for FY 2021–22 and FY 2022–23 under Section 73 of the KGST/CGST Acts, arising from an alleged mismatch between its GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B returns.

It said its partner could not respond to the notices because his twin daughters faced a serious medical emergency and one daughter died; it produced her death certificate.

The petitioner had responded to an earlier intimation for FY 2021–22 but did not respond to the subsequent show-cause notices, after which the adjudication orders were made.

It sought restoration of the proceedings and an opportunity to provide documents supporting its returns and transactions.

Whether the Court should interfere with the adjudication orders and restore the proceedings to give the petitioner an opportunity to respond to the show-cause notices dated 28 May 2025 and 15 July 2023.

The proceedings arose under Sections 73(1) and 73(9) of the KGST/CGST Acts, 2017, read with Rule 142 of the corresponding Rules; Section 73 provides for determination of tax not paid, short-paid, or erroneously refunded, while Section 73(9) concerns the resulting determination order.

The Court exercised its jurisdiction under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution to consider whether the petitioner should receive an opportunity to answer the show-cause notices.

No precedent was cited; the Court’s stated basis was its finding that the reasons for non-participation were bona fide and that a response could enable comprehensive adjudication.

The Court accepted the partner’s family medical emergency and the death of his daughter as bona fide reasons for failing to participate.

Given that the dispute concerned an alleged return mismatch and the petitioner asserted it could produce documents substantiating its declarations and the genuineness of the transactions, the Court considered an opportunity to respond necessary for comprehensive adjudication.

It therefore set aside the adjudication orders and summaries and permitted responses to the notices.

The Court quashed the adjudication orders and summaries at Annexures A1, A2, B1 and B2, and the recovery notice dated 5 August 2026 at Annexure C1.

It granted the petitioner liberty to respond to the show-cause notices by 15 October 2025.

The stated response deadline predates the judgment dated 1 September 2026, an apparent date inconsistency in the order.