Deepak Roshan, J. - (1.) The issues involved in the present writ application are of seminal importance, namely- (i) Whether interest liability under Section 50 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (for short 'CGST Act') can be determined without initiating any adjudication process either u/s 73 or 74 of the CGST Act in the event of an assesse raising dispute towards liability of interest? (ii) Whether recovery proceedings u/s 79 of the CGST Act can be initiated for recovery of interest u/s 50 of the said Act without initiation and completion of the adjudication proceedings under the Act?
(2.) The facts of the present writ application lie in a very narrow compass. The petitioner, being a partnership firm, was registered under the provisions of the CGST Act. Under Section 39 of the CGST Act, provisions have been incorporated for furnishing of monthly return by a registered person on or before 20th day of the month succeeding such calendar month in which returns were to be filed. Said returns are known as 'GSTR-3 Return'. However, it is an admitted fact that due to the Nationwide problem in GSTN Portal, said GSTR-3 Return, which is an auto populated return on the basis of details of inward and outward supply, is not being generated, due to which, by way of stop-gap arrangement, provisions have been incorporated for filing GSTR-3B Return in terms of Rule 61(5) read with Rule 61(6) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017 (for short 'CGST Rules').
(3.) Further, under Section 39(7) of the CGST Act, it is provided, inter alia, that a registered person, who is required to furnish his return under sub-section (1) of Section 39, would be liable to pay to the Government the tax due as per such return not later than the last date on which the dealer is required to furnish such return. A conjoint reading of Section 39(1) read with Section 39(7) of the CGST Act would reveal that a dealer was liable to pay tax within 20th day of the succeeding month for which said dealer was liable to file GSTR-3 Return. However, since the very onset of implementation of GST regime, filing of monthly return u/s 39, being GSTR-3, was suspended and continues to be suspended till today, and, return in GSTR-3B is required to be filed by registered person.;