HC Sets Aside Penalty Order as Vehicle Arrived Before e-Way Bill Expiry but Remained Unloaded Due to National Holiday

Case Details: Perfect Enterprise v. State of West Bengal - [2023] 152 taxmann.com 121 (Calcutta)

Judiciary and Counsel Details

• • Krishna Rao, J.
  • Milindo Paul, Nabankur Paul & Ms Bedashruti Bose for the Petitioner.
  • Subir Kumar Saha, Ld. AGP & Bikramaditya Ghosh for the Respondent.

Facts of the Case

The petitioner dispatched goods from Gujarat to Silliguri and the e-way bill was valid up to May 2nd, 2022. The vehicle was intercepted and detained by the GST Officer on May 4th, 2023. It was submitted that the vehicle reached Silliguri on May 2nd, 2022 before the expiry of e-way bill. The goods were required to be unloaded at the stockyard but when the driver reached the stockyard, it was closed due to national holiday. However, the order imposing tax and penalty was passed. The petitioner filed appeal but the Appellate Authority rejected the appeal. Therefore, it filed appeal before the High Court.

High Court Held

The Honorable High Court noted that there was no wilful misconduct committed by petitioner while transporting goods. The vehicle reached destination with time period of validity of e-way bill but it could not enter the stockyard for unloading of the goods and the driver had parked the vehicle in the vicinity of the stockyard. Therefore, the Court held that it was not a case of wilful attempt on the part of the petitioner to evade payment of tax and accordingly, the impugned orders were liable to be set aside and quashed.