Facts: Federal Bank Ltd. challenged an order confirming an SCN proposing a demand against them under the CGST Act, 2017. The SCN was issued on 24-12-2023, with a hearing scheduled for 26-12-2023 in Delhi, which was a short notice period, considering that 25-12-2023 was a gazetted holiday. The petitioner submitted a detailed reply to the SCN on 21-10-2023, providing full disclosures, but the impugned order claimed the reply was incomplete and unsatisfactory.
Decision: The court set aside the impugned order and SCN, as the Proper Officer had not provided the petitioner with an opportunity to clarify their reply or furnish further documents/details. It was ruled that the short notice period for the hearing, issued after office hours on 24-12-2023 with the next day being a holiday, did not grant the petitioners adequate opportunity to defend themselves. The matter was remitted to the Proper Officer for re-adjudication.