Facts of the Case

The petitioner challenged the manner of service of a show-cause notice and consequent Order-in-Original, both of which had been uploaded only under the 'View Additional Notices and Orders' tab on the GST common portal (www.gst.gov.in), raising the short question whether such uploading amounts to proper service under Section 169 read with Section 146 of the CGST Act, 2017. The department argued that a retrospective amendment introduced by Section 115 of the Finance Act, 2022 (via the Fifth Schedule) expanded the notification under Section 146 to cover 'all functions provided under the CGST Rules, 2017' on the common portal, and hence validated such service.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether uploading of a show-cause notice/order-in-original solely under the 'View Additional Notices and Orders' tab of the GST common portal amounts to proper service under Section 169 read with Section 146 of the CGST Act.
  2. Whether the retrospective amendment to the Section 146 notification introduced by Section 115 of the Finance Act, 2022 alters this position.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • None of the provisions of the CGST Rules, 2017 refer to the Common Portal for the purpose of service of a show-cause notice or order; the Rules confine the Common Portal's role to specific functions -- registration, returns, payment, refund, appeals, e-way bill, e-invoicing -- and Rule 142 alone deals with electronic communication of orders.
  • The expression 'Common Portal' has been used repeatedly across the Rules for distinct, enumerated purposes, and cannot be read to silently expand to cover service of SCNs/orders as well.
  • The petitioner, an illiterate person in a companion matter relied upon, had no knowledge of the order having been uploaded only on the Common Portal.

Respondent's Arguments

  • Service of notice by uploading on the Common Portal cannot be discarded where the taxpayer has knowledge of it and has contested the proceedings by filing a reply; in such cases, the SCN cannot be said to be unserved.
  • Section 115 of the Finance Act, 2022, by retrospectively amending the notification dated 23.01.2018 issued under Section 146, extended the Common Portal's functions to cover 'all functions provided under the CGST Rules, 2017', which should validate portal-based service.

Court Order / Findings

  • Following its own earlier rulings in Luxmi Traders v. Union Territory of Chandigarh and The Amar Cooperative LC Society Ltd. v. State of Haryana, the Court reaffirmed that service of an SCN cannot be deemed sufficient merely because it was uploaded on the Common Portal, unless its receipt is acknowledged or a reply is filed; where no reply is filed and an ex parte order results, the proceedings must be restored to the SCN stage with liberty to file a reply within four weeks.
  • The retrospective amendment under Section 115 of the Finance Act, 2022 was considered afresh and found not to alter this position: none of the enumerated Rules refer to the Common Portal for service of SCN/order specifically, and Rule 142 -- the only provision on communication of orders -- requires electronic communication, not mere portal upload without more.
  • Since the order in this case was uploaded only on the Common Portal and remained unresponded, the writ petition was disposed of on the same terms as Luxmi Traders -- the proceedings restored to the SCN stage, with any attachment of the petitioner's bank account pursuant to the challenged order to stand revoked, and, where 10% pre-deposit had already been made for a filed appeal, that appeal to be heard and decided on merits.

Important Clarification

  • Uploading a show-cause notice or an Order-in-Original solely under the 'View Additional Notices and Orders' tab of the GST common portal, without more, is not proper service under Section 169 read with Section 146 of the CGST Act unless the taxpayer acknowledges receipt or responds to it.
  • The retrospective amendment introduced by Section 115 of the Finance Act, 2022 to the Section 146 Common Portal notification does not, by itself, validate portal-only service, since the CGST Rules nowhere designate the Common Portal as the mode of service for SCNs/orders; Rule 142 requires actual electronic communication.
  • Where an ex parte order results from such defective service, the remedy is to restore the proceedings to the SCN stage (with liberty to reply) rather than treat the order as validly served and relegate the taxpayer to a time-barred appeal.

Sections Involved

  • Section 169, CGST Act, 2017 -- modes of service of notices, orders and other communications.
  • Section 146, CGST Act, 2017 -- notification of the Common Goods and Services Tax Electronic Portal.
  • Section 115, Finance Act, 2022 -- retrospective amendment of the Section 146 Common Portal notification.
  • Rule 142, CGST Rules, 2017 -- electronic communication of notices and orders.

Decision – In Favour of

Assessee. Proceedings were restored to the show-cause notice stage with liberty to file a reply, and any bank account attachment was revoked.

Case Details

High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh; CWP-15866-2026 (O&M); Coram: Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor; Date of Decision: 03.08.2026.

Link to Download the Order

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