Taxpayer Wins Relief: Court Reverses SVLDR Scheme Rejection and Orders Payment Adjustment.


10 December 2024 Business Laws >> Business & Commercial Law   |   Service Tax >> Tax Laws  

In the matter of Bramhanand Kanojia v/s The Union of India, through the Secretary Ministry of Finance, New Delhi & Others, the petitioner, a sole proprietor in the business of dry cleaning, challenged the rejection of their application under the Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme, 2019 (SVLDR Scheme) by the Respondents. The rejection was based on the argument that the duty demand was not quantified before the deadline of 30 June 2019, rendering the petitioner ineligible for the scheme.

The petitioner had previously admitted a service tax liability of approximately Rs. 21.70 lakhs in 2018 and had informed the Respondents in 2019 that they had paid a total of Rs. 23.73 lakhs. In the SVLDRS application, the petitioner mentioned Rs. 28.72 lakhs as the duty amount, which led to the rejection of the application.


 

 

The court observed that the duty liability was sufficiently quantified before the 30 June 2019 deadline, despite discrepancies in the figures. The petitioner had voluntarily admitted the liability and paid part of the dues. The court ruled that the rejection of the application was unjustified under Section 125(1)(e) of the SVLDR Scheme, as the quantification had been made earlier, even if the show-cause notice was issued later.

The court directed the Respondents to accept the petitioner’s declaration, recalculate the amount due, and allow the petitioner to pay the balance with interest. It also ordered the issuance of a final certificate once the payment was made.

FINANCE ACT, 1977