The Supreme Court has disposed of a writ petition challenging the constitutional validity of Section 69 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017, which empowers GST officers to arrest persons accused of specified GST offences.
The bench of Justice Manmohan and Justice K. Vinod Chandran has held that the issue is no longer res integra, as a three-judge Bench had already upheld the validity of the provision in Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India & Ors. (2025) 6 SCC 545.
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The writ petition primarily sought a declaration that Section 69 of the CGST Act is unconstitutional. The matter was heard by a Division Bench comprising Justice Manmohan and Justice K. Vinod Chandran, which delivered its order on June 29, 2026.
Section 69 of the CGST Act authorizes the Commissioner to order the arrest of a person where there are reasons to believe that the individual has committed certain offences under the Act, particularly those involving substantial tax evasion or fraudulent availment of input tax credit. The provision has been the subject of constitutional challenges on the ground that it confers extensive powers on GST authorities.
The petitioner questioned the legality and constitutional validity of this statutory power. However, during the hearing, the Supreme Court noted that the constitutional issue had already been conclusively decided by a larger Bench.
The Bench observed that a three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court in Radhika Agarwal v. Union of India & Ors. had already upheld the constitutional validity of Section 69 of the CGST Act. Since the legal issue stood settled, the Court found no reason to independently examine the challenge raised in the present petition.
Accordingly, the Court disposed of the writ petition in terms of the earlier judgment.
While disposing of the matter, the Supreme Court also directed that any interim order granted during the pendency of the proceedings shall stand vacated. Consequently, all pending applications were disposed of.
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