GST Assessment Quashed Due to Mistaken Identity | HC

Case Details: Srikant Das vs. Joint Commissioner of State Tax [2026] 182 taxmann.com 867 (Orissa)

Judiciary and Counsel Details

• Harish Tandon, CJ. & Murahari Sri Raman, J.
• Pranaya Kishore Harichandan, Adv. for the Petitioner.
• Sunil Mishra, Standing Counsel (for State CT & GST) for the Opposite Parties.

Facts of the Case

The petitioner was a works contractor who had ceased business and did not possess any GST registration, yet the assessing officer generated a temporary GSTIN and issued ASMT-14 initiating assessment proceedings under Section 63 of the CGST Act, based on data indicating turnover and returns, and passed an ex parte order treating the petitioner as an unregistered person. The petitioner remained unaware of the proceedings and did not participate, and the appellate authority dismissed the appeal and confirmed the demand. The petitioner filed a writ petition challenging both the assessment order and the appellate affirmation. The matter was accordingly placed before the High Court.

High Court Held

The High Court held that the assessment and appellate orders suffered from a fundamental error of fact, as the standing counsel admitted that the assessment was based on mistaken identity, the returns and turnover data relied upon pertained to another registered person bearing an identical name. It was observed that the assessment under Section 63 could not be sustained when the basic premise of the proceedings was conceded to be incorrect, and the appellate order confirming the demand likewise lacked legal validity. Consequently, the appellate orders were quashed, holding that the proceedings under Section 63, read with Section 107 of the CGST Act and the Odisha GST Act, were vitiated by mistaken identity, and the writ petition was allowed.