HC Bars GST Return Disclosure Under RTI | Upholds Section 158

Case Details: Adarsh s/o Gautam Pimpare vs. State of Maharashtra - [2025] 179 taxmann.com 437 (Bombay)

Judiciary and Counsel Details

• Arun R. Pedneker, J.
• Maniyar Irfan D., Adv. for the Petitioner.
• Mrs M.N. Ghanekar, Adv. for the Respondent.

Facts of the Case

The petitioner sought disclosure under the Right to Information Act, 2005, of GST returns of six industries, alleging fraud by the industries and asserting that the information was required to prosecute them. The Information Officer issued third-party notices and rejected the request after receiving objections. First appeals were dismissed, and a second appeal before the State Information Commissioner was also dismissed. A writ petition was filed challenging the refusal. The matter was accordingly placed before the High Court.

High Court Held

The High Court held that the confidentiality provision under the GST Act barred the disclosure of the requested particulars. Being a special and later enactment, the GST law prevailed over the general Right to Information Act, 2005 regime for matters of confidentiality. The allegation of fraud by the petitioner was bald in nature and unsupported by any prima facie material, and no larger public interest was shown to warrant disclosure of personal or third-party information. The public-interest override under the privacy exemption was therefore not attracted, and the authorities had rightly refused to provide the information, confirming the decision in favour of the revenue under Section 158 of the CGST Act/Maharashtra GST Act.

List of Cases Reviewed

• Central Public Information Officer v. Subhash Chandra Agarwal [2019] 111 taxmann.com 206 (SC) (para 8) followed

List of Cases Referred to

• Central Public Information Officer v. Subhash Chandra Agarwal [2019] 111 taxmann.com 206 (SC) (para 8).