Facts of the Case

Vyshak P.G., proprietor of M/s. Voila Hospitality Services, Kadavanthra, Ernakulam, had filed a writ petition before the High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam back in 2020 challenging a notice issued by the State Tax Officer, Second Circle, State GST Department, Tripunithura, for the year 2017-18, which is annexed to the petition as Exhibit P1. The matter remained pending until it came up for admission on 02.11.2023. On that date, counsel for the petitioner informed the Court that the petitioner did not wish to proceed further with the writ petition, and the matter was disposed of on that basis.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the petitioner intended to continue prosecuting the challenge to the GST notice issued for the year 2017-18.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • No substantive arguments on the merits of the challenge to the notice are recorded; counsel for the petitioner simply informed the Court that the petitioner did not want to proceed with the writ petition.

Respondent's Arguments

  • Not recorded; the Government Pleader was present, but no submissions on the merits appear in the order since the matter was disposed of on the petitioner's own statement.

Court Order/Findings

  • Considering the statement of petitioner's counsel that he did not wish to proceed, the writ petition was dismissed as not pressed, without any adjudication on the validity of the underlying GST notice for the year 2017-18.

Important Clarification

  • A dismissal "as not pressed" leaves the underlying show cause notice or demand entirely unaffected and does not amount to an adjudication on its merits or legality.
  • An assessee whose writ petition is dismissed as not pressed remains subject to further proceedings under the notice and retains whatever statutory remedies are otherwise available.

Sections Involved

  • The order does not specify the statutory provision under which the Exhibit P1 notice was issued. Broadly, the dispute falls within the assessment/demand machinery of the Kerala State Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, for the tax period 2017-18.

Decision – In Favour of

The petition was dismissed as not pressed at the petitioner's own instance, with no finding on the merits of the underlying GST notice. This is not a decision in favour of either the assessee or the department — the notice for 2017-18 remains as it was, unaffected by any adjudication in this order.

Related Case Laws

No directly on-point case notes are currently published on this site.

Case Details

  • Court: High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam
  • Case No.: WP(C) No. 25379 of 2020
  • CNR: Not available
  • Coram: Hon'ble Mr Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh
  • Decision Date: 2 November 2023
  • Disposal Nature: Dismissed as not pressed

Link to Download the Order

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