The Andhra Pradesh High Court has set aside a best judgment assessment order issued against JPR Projects, a registered partnership firm based in Visakhapatnam, holding that the demand raised by the State Tax Department was unsustainable under the provisions of the GST Act.
The Bench of Justice R. Raghunandan Rao and Justice T.C.D. Sekhar clarified that the deeming provision under Section 62(2) does not require intimation to the officer. The court observed, “There is no stipulation that the deeming clause would come into effect only after intimation to the proper officer. Once the taxpayer files returns and pays taxes with late fees, the best judgment order ceases to exist.”
The dispute arose after the Assistant Commissioner of State Tax, Chinawaltair Circle, Visakhapatnam, passed an assessment order on February 7, 2024, under Section 62 of the GST Act. The order was based on the allegation that JPR Projects had failed to file returns for the relevant period. Subsequently, a demand of ₹12.92 lakh was raised and coercively recovered from the firm’s electronic credit ledger in March 2025.
Challenging the order, JPR Projects argued before the court that it had already filed the required returns and paid the due tax along with late fees, thereby fulfilling the conditions under Section 62(2) of the GST Act. As per this provision, once valid returns are filed within the stipulated time, any best judgment assessment order stands withdrawn automatically.
Appearing for the petitioner, Advocate Jyothi Ratna Anumolu contended that the recovery was illegal since the assessment order was deemed to have been withdrawn by operation of law. The State, however, argued that the petitioner had not formally intimated the tax officer about filing the returns, and therefore, the demand continued to remain valid.
The court directed the tax department to re-credit Rs. 12.92 lakh to JPR Projects’ electronic credit ledger within four weeks, reversing the debit entry made earlier.
The writ petition was accordingly disposed of, with the court leaving it open for the department to initiate fresh assessment proceedings if necessary.
Case Details
Case Title: JPR Projects Versus The State Of Andhra Pradesh
Case No.: W.P.No.18990 of 2025
Date: 20-08-2025
Counsel For Petitioner: Jyothi Ratna Anumolu
Counsel For Respondent: GP
