APHC010300082026 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction) [3529] MONDAY,THE TWENTY SECOND DAY OF JUNE TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY SIX PRESENT THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE R RAGHUNANDAN RAO THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE T.C.D.SEKHAR WRIT PETITION NO: 15702/2026 Between: 1. M/S. DEEPSRI ENGINEERING CONSULTANTS,, A REGISTERED PARTNERSHIP FIRM, HAVING ITS PLACE OF BUSINESS AT ASSESSMENT NO. 122443, PLOT NO.232, A.P.H.B. COLONY, GUNTUR, ANDHRA PRADESH - 522004, BEARING GSTIN NO.37AAGFD7462D2ZF REPRESENTED BY ITS MANAGING PARTNER, SRI ELI VENKATESWARA RAO, S/O. E. VENKATA RATNAM, AGED ABOUT 65 YEARS. ...PETITIONER AND 1. THE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONERST, ELURU BAZAR CIRCLE, GUNTUR -1 DIVISION, GUNTUR, ANDHRA PRADESH.- 522001 2. THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER ST, GUNTUR DIVISION GUNTUR, ANDHRA PRADESH.-522001 3. THE COMMISSIONER OF STATE TAX, ANDHRA PRADESH, VIJAYAWADA.-522501 4. THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH, REP, BY ITS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY, REVENUE (COMMERCIAL TAXES- II) DEPARTMENT A.P, SECRETARIAT, VELAGAPUDI, AMARAVATI, GUNTUR DISTRICT.-522238 ...RESPONDENT(S): 2 Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India praying that in the circumstances stated in the affidavit filed therewith, the High Court may be pleased topleased to issue a Writ, Order or Direction, more particularly one in the nature of Writ of Mandamus declaring the proceedings in Form GST DRC-07 dated 21.09.2024 passed by the 1st respondent under Section 74 of the APGST Act, 2017 covering the tax periods 2020-21,2021-22. 2022-23 and 2023-24 through a single composite assessment proceeding as illegal, arbitrary, without jurisdiction, contrary to Sections 73, 74 and 75 of the GST Act, violative of principles of natural justice and contrary to the law declared by this Hon'ble Court, and consequently set aside the same together with all consequential proceedings and further direct the Appellate Additional Commissioner (ST). Vijayawada, to entertain and adjudicate the petitioner's statutory appeal against the impugned proceeding on merits without rejecting the same on the ground of limitation, and pass IA NO: 1 OF 2026 Petition under Section 151 CPC praying that in the circumstances stated in the affidavit filed in support of the petition, the High Court may be pleased pleased to suspend the operation of the impugned Form GST DRC-07 dated 21.09.2024 passed by the 1st respondent under Section 74 of the APGST Act, 2017 and all consequential proceedings arising therefrom, including recovery of tax, interest and penalty, and further direct the respondents not to initiate or continue any coercive recovery proceedings against the petitioner pending consideration of the petitioner's claim for permission to avail the statutory appellate remedy, and pass Counsel for the Petitioner: 1. M RAVINDRA Counsel for the Respondent(S): 1. GP FOR COMMERCIAL TAX 3 The Court made the following Order: (Per Hon’ble Sri Justice R. Raghunandan Rao) Heard Sri M.Ravindra, learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Government Pleader for Commercial Tax appearing for the respondents. 2. The petitioner is a proprietorship concern, which has been served with an order of assessment, dated 21.09.2024 passed by the 1st respondent. This order of assessment covers the period from 2020-2021 to 2023-2024. 3. The petitioner, after having raised various grounds of challenge, has pressed the ground that, a single order of assessment, issued for more than one financial year, would be violative of the provisions of Section 73 and Section 74 of the GST Act, 2017, and consequently, set aside the impugned order of assessment. 4. A Division Bench of this Court, in W.P.No.11028 of 2025 & batch, after considering the said question, had held that, a single show-cause notice or a single composite assessment order, cannot be passed, in relation to more than one tax period of either a month if the assessment is taken up before the due date for filing of the annual return or for more than one year if the due date for filing of annual return has been reached. 5. The petitioner has raised various grounds of challenge. However, the petitioner is pressing the primary ground of the order of assessment being a composite order of assessment. In that view of the matter, the present Writ 4 Petition is being disposed of, on this ground of challenge, leaving open the other grounds of challenge. 6. Accordingly, this Writ Petition is disposed of, setting aside the impugned order of assessment, dated 21.09.2024 and remand back to the respondents, leaving it open to the respondents to initiate fresh proceedings, for each assessment year separately. This order is subject to the condition of the petitioner depositing 20% of the disputed tax, within a period of six (06) weeks. Any payment made or any amount recovered from the petitioner, after the passing of the impugned order, shall be adjusted against the aforesaid 20%. 7. Needless to say, the period from the date of issuance of the impugned order of assessment till the date of receipt of this order shall be excluded for the purposes of limitation. There shall be no order as to costs. As a sequel, pending miscellaneous applications, if any, shall stand closed. ________________________ R. RAGHUNANDAN RAO, J ________________ T.C.D. SEKHAR, J Date: 22.06.2026 KA 5 THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE R RAGHUNANDAN RAO THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE T.C.D.SEKHAR WRIT PETITION NO: 15702/2026 Date: 22.06.2026 KA