The Punjab and Haryana High Court has considered whether uploading a GST notice and an order-in-original under the tab titled “View Additional Notices and Orders” on the GST common portal constitutes proper service upon a taxpayer under Section 169 read with Section 146 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
The ruling was delivered in M/s Karma Enterprises v. Joint Excise and Taxation Commissioner and Another, CWP-18038-2026 (O&M), pronounced on 21 July 2026 by a Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor.
Background of the Case
The principal issue before the High Court was whether the mere uploading of a notice and the order-in-original on the GST portal amounted to valid and proper service upon the petitioner. The Court noted that the issue had already been settled in its earlier decision in Luxmi Traders v. Union Territory of Chandigarh and Others, CWP-27139-2025.
The High Court accordingly reproduced and applied the conclusions recorded in Luxmi Traders concerning service of show cause notices and adjudication orders through the GST portal.
High Court’s Findings on GST Portal Service
The Court reiterated that the service of a show cause notice cannot be treated as sufficient merely because it has been uploaded on the GST common portal. Such service may be treated as effective where the taxpayer acknowledges receipt or files a reply and participates in the adjudication proceedings.
Where a show cause notice is uploaded only on the portal, no reply is filed and an ex parte adjudication order is passed, the proceedings are required to be restored to the stage of issuance of the show cause notice. The taxpayer must then be permitted to submit a reply, followed by adjudication after providing an appropriate opportunity of hearing.
The Court further reiterated that where an order-in-original is passed after contest but is served only by uploading it on the GST portal, the limitation period for filing an appeal does not commence merely from such uploading. The affected taxpayer must be allowed an opportunity to file the statutory appeal within the period granted by the Court.
Where an appeal against an order uploaded only on the portal has been dismissed as time-barred, the appellate order is liable to be set aside and the appeal restored for consideration on merits.
Similarly, where both the show cause notice and the ex parte adjudication order were uploaded only on the portal and the subsequent appeal was dismissed on limitation, the adjudication order and appellate order may be set aside, with the proceedings restored to the show cause notice stage.
Decision in Karma Enterprises
Since the question raised by M/s Karma Enterprises was squarely covered by the earlier decision in Luxmi Traders, the Punjab and Haryana High Court disposed of the writ petition in the same terms. All pending miscellaneous applications were also disposed of.
The judgment reinforces that statutory service requirements under the CGST Act cannot be reduced to the mechanical uploading of documents on the common portal, particularly where the taxpayer has neither acknowledged the notice nor participated in the proceedings.
Significance of the Judgment
The ruling is relevant for taxpayers facing ex parte GST demands or dismissal of appeals on limitation where the notice or adjudication order was made available only under the “View Additional Notices and Orders” tab of the GST portal.
It also distinguishes between cases where a taxpayer actually participated in adjudication proceedings and cases where the taxpayer remained unaware of the proceedings. Participation and submission of a reply may cure an objection relating to service of the show cause notice, whereas mere portal uploading, without acknowledgment or response, may not constitute sufficient service.
The judgment is important for advocates, Chartered Accountants, GST practitioners, tax consultants, corporate tax teams and businesses dealing with questions of service, limitation, natural justice, ex parte adjudication and appellate remedies under the GST law.