In Brief
The Supreme Court set aside the High Court's direction requiring the Railways to specify the correct HSN Code and GST rate in tender documents. The Court held that while the tender clauses require bidders to declare applicable taxes, there is no statutory or public duty on the State to determine and specify the HSN Code. The liability to pay GST lies with the supplier, who must self-assess and file returns. Although bidders may understate their tax rates—creating apparent unfairness—this does not violate the Constitution, and the remedy lies with tax authorities' enforcement, not judicial mandates. The Court allowed the appeal but directed that contract award documents be forwarded to suppliers' jurisdictional Assessing Officers to ensure tax compliance.
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