Karnataka HC allowed GST Refund of 27 crores to Swiggy

Case Details: Union of India v. Bundl Technologies (P.) Ltd. - [2022] 136 taxmann.com 112 (Karnataka)

Judiciary and Counsel Details

• • Alok Aradhe and M.G.S. Kamal, JJ.
  • M.B. Nargund and Amit Anand, Advs. for the Appellant. 
  • Lakshmi Kumaran, Ravi Raghavan, Syed M. Peeran and Siddharth Balve, Advs. for the Respondent.

Facts of the Case

The assessee was company operating an e-commerce platform under the brand name ‘Swiggy’ and an investigation was initiated by the Director General of Goods and Service Tax Intelligence (DGGI). During the course of investigation, approximately Rs. 27 crores were paid. The assessee filed refund application after lapse of 10 months of investigation as no SCN was issued, however, no response was received against such refund application. Thereafter, the assessee filed a writ petition with Karnataka High Court to receive the refund of amount deposited.

High Court Held

The Honorable High Court observed that there was no material on record to indicate that amounts paid at odd hours were on admission by the company about its liability. Moreover, there was no communication in writing from company to proper officer about either self-ascertainment or admission of liability by company to infer that such payment was made voluntarily under Section 74(5) of the CGST Act, 2017. Also, the refund application and the writ petition both were filed within two years of the payment made during investigation. Therefore, it was held that the assessee reserved its right to seek refund and mere payment should not be treated as admission of liability.