Facts of the Case

M/s. Indrani Patnaik challenged an Order-in-Original dated 20.02.2025 and a Summary Order dated 24.02.2025 passed by the Additional Commissioner, GST and Central Excise, Rourkela, under Section 73 of the CGST/OGST Act, 2017, raising a demand of Rs.8,40,67,345/- for the financial year 2020-21 along with a penalty of Rs.84,06,734/-. The matter was taken up through hybrid mode, with the petitioner's Senior Advocate pointing out that an identical challenge in a companion writ petition, W.P.(C) No.14904 of 2025, had already been disposed of the same day by setting aside similar orders and remitting the matter for fresh adjudication.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the order-in-original and summary order raising the GST demand should be set aside on parity with a companion matter decided the same day.
  2. Whether re-adjudication should proceed afresh before the concerned authority.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The matter was identical to the challenge decided the same day in W.P.(C) No.14904 of 2025, where the order-in-original and summary order had already been set aside and remitted for fresh adjudication.
  • The Order-in-Original dated 20.02.2025 and the Summary Order dated 24.02.2025 should similarly be set aside, with the matter remitted to the adjudicating authority on the same terms.

Respondent's Arguments

  • The Senior Standing Counsel for the CGST Department raised no objection to granting the petitioner the same relief as had been granted in the companion writ petition decided earlier that day.

Court Order / Findings

  • In view of the conceded position and consistency with the companion order, the Court set aside the Order-in-Original dated 20.02.2025 and the Summary Order dated 24.02.2025, remitting the matter to the adjudicating authority for re-adjudication on the same terms as W.P.(C) No.14904 of 2025.
  • The writ petition was disposed of accordingly, without a detailed independent examination of the demand's merits.

Important Clarification

  • Where a coordinate bench has already granted relief on identical facts in a companion matter the same day, courts readily extend the same relief without repeating a full merits analysis.
  • Large GST demands confirmed under Section 73 can still be set aside for fresh adjudication where the surrounding procedural circumstances mirror an already-decided companion case.

Sections Involved

  • Section 73, CGST/OGST Act, 2017 – determination of tax not paid or short paid, for reasons other than fraud.
  • Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and Odisha Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 – jointly termed the GST Act for adjudication of the demand.

Decision – In Favour of

Decided in favour of the assessee. The order-in-original and summary order were set aside, and the matter remitted for fresh adjudication on the same terms as the companion order.

Case Details

Court: High Court of Orissa at Cuttack
Case No.: W.P.(C) No.14926 of 2025
Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Biraja Prasanna Satapathy and Hon'ble Mr. Justice Murahari Sri Raman
Date of Order: 04.06.2025

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