In Brief
A hotel company registered for service tax faced show-cause notices for evasion. While the company was under insolvency proceedings with a legal moratorium on all payments (11 Sept 2018 to 24 July 2020), the Sabka Vishwas settlement scheme was introduced. The company timely applied under the scheme, but the payment deadline (30 June 2020) fell during the moratorium when payments were legally barred. The company later offered full payment after the moratorium lifted, but was refused. The High Court dismissed its petition. The Supreme Court allowed the appeal, holding that where a statutory bar makes performance impossible, the taxpayer cannot be punished for non-compliance. The court directed acceptance of the settlement payment and issuance of a discharge certificate.
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