The Calcutta High Court has ruled in favour of refunding a penalty in a case involving a 9-hour time gap between the expiration of an e-way bill and the interception of the associated vehicle. The judgment was delivered by a Single bench of Justice Md. Nizamuddin, who noted that there was no evidence of the petitioner’s intent to evade tax.
The petitioner, who is the assessee, had challenged the order issued by the appellate authority under the West Bengal Goods and Services Tax (WBGST) Act. This order had upheld the decision of the adjudicating authority, which imposed a penalty for the transportation of the vehicle in question after the e-way bill had expired.
In this case, the e-way bill expired on December 27, 2022, at 11:59 p.m., and the vehicle in question was intercepted at 8:37 a.m. on December 28, 2022. The time gap between the expiration of the e-way bill and the vehicle interception was approximately 9 hours, which falls short of a full day. Importantly, the writ petitioner argued that there was no intention to evade taxes.
The advocate appearing for the respondents could not make out any case against the petitioner that there was any deliberate or willful intention of the petitioner to avoid and evade the tax.
The court, in its judgment, disposed of the writ petition by overturning the orders issued by the appellate authority and adjudicating authority. Consequently, the petitioner is entitled to a refund of the penalty in question, provided that all necessary legal requirements are met.
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