Bail Application — Section 132 of the CGST Act --- The petitioner sought grant of regular bail in respect of a case under Section 69 / 132(1)(b)(c) of the Act. The allegations are that the petitioner had availed ITC to the tune of about Rs.10.81 crores on the basis of invoices without there being actual sale of goods. The petitioner submitted that the vires of the Act i.e. Punjab GST Act has itself been challenged in CWP No.8004-2020 wherein notice of motion has been issued by the Hon’ble Division Bench of this Court. The petitioner has undergone custody of a period of about 10 months and that the maximum sentence provided for the offence in question is 5 years, therefore, no useful purpose would be served by detaining the petitioner behind bars as the trial in any case is not likely to be immediately concluded.
Held that:- The Hon’ble High Court accepted the petition on the ground that keeping in view the custody period and also that the maximum sentence provided for the offence in question is 5 years and that the vires of the Act is itself under challenge.—Subhash Chander Vs. State of Punjab And Another [2020] 27 TAXLOK.COM 007 (P&H)