DGGI officers empowered to issue summons under GST

Last updated: 13 January 2022

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Quick Summary

The Gujarat High Court has ruled that DGGI officers are empowered to issue summons under Section 70 of the CGST Act. The court found that these officers, acting as proper officers, have the authority to summon individuals for evidence or document production during GST inquiries, similar to civil court procedures. This decision clarifies the jurisdiction of DGGI in GST investigations.

Court :
Gujarat High Court

Brief :
An inquiry was initiated and summons were issued against the assessee to give evidence and produce the documents in connection with the inquiry initiated for alleged in correct IGST refunds. This petition was filed before the Hon'ble Gujarat High Court, challenging the summons on the ground that DGGI wrongly assumed jurisdiction to issue summon under Section 70 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 ("the CGST Act") by virtue of Circular dated July 5, 2017 and the same was without jurisdiction.

Citation :
R/Special Civil Application No. 7388 of 2021 dated June 24, 2021

Yasho Industries Ltd. v. Union of India [R/Special Civil Application No. 7388 of 2021 dated June 24, 2021]

An inquiry was initiated and summons were issued against the assessee to give evidence and produce the documents in connection with the inquiry initiated for alleged in correct IGST refunds. This petition was filed before the Hon'ble Gujarat High Court, challenging the summons on the ground that DGGI wrongly assumed jurisdiction to issue summon under Section 70 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 ("the CGST Act") by virtue of Circular dated July 5, 2017 and the same was without jurisdiction.

The Hon’ble Gujarat High Court, observed that, under the CGST Act, the proper officer has the power to issue summon to any person whose attendance he considers necessary either to give evidence or to produce the documents in any inquiry in the same manner as of a Civil Court.

Held that, the Revenue Authority being the officer of the Central Tax and the Superintendent under the CGST Act is also assigned the powers of proper officer by the CBIC vide Circular dated July 5, 2017. Therefore, the proper officer in relation to the function to be performed under the CGST Act as contemplated under Section 2(91) of the CGST Act, and as such, is entitled to issue summons in connection with the inquiry initiated.

FAQ :

Yes, the Gujarat High Court has confirmed that DGGI officers, when acting as proper officers, are empowered to issue summons under Section 70 of the CGST Act.

The ruling is based on Section 70 of the CGST Act, which grants proper officers the power to issue summons, and a CBIC Circular dated July 5, 2017, which assigns these powers to officers like Superintendents within the Central Tax authority.

Proper officers have the power to issue summons to any person whose attendance they consider necessary to give evidence or produce documents in an inquiry, exercising powers similar to those of a Civil Court.

The case involved Yasho Industries Ltd. challenging a summons issued by DGGI for alleged incorrect IGST refunds, questioning DGGI's jurisdiction to issue such summons.