PARESH NATHALAL CHAUHAN Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Mr. Chetan Pandya, learned advocate for the petitioner has tendered an affidavit of Nathalal Maganlal Chauhan, the father of the petitioner. The same is taken on record.

(2.) The learned Assistant Government Pleader has submitted a confidential report of the proceedings carried out by the respondents at the premises of the petitioner pursuant to the authorisation issued in favour of the second respondent under sub-section (2) of section 67 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (hereinafter referred to as "the CGST Act").

(3.) This court has perused the report in its entirety. A perusal of the report reveals that the concerned officers authorised to C/SCA/18463/2019 ORDER carry out the search at the residential premises of the petitioner had stayed there from 11.10.2019 to 18.10.2019. A perusal of the record of the proceedings of the case reveals that on 11.10.2019 at 2:15, it has been recorded that after searching of the rooms in the premises, the records of the accounts were brought to the main room and gathered there which included the bank passbooks of the family members as well as cheque books and that verification thereof is continuing. The proceedings thereafter do not reveal any further search carried out at the premises but reveal that the officers had stayed at the premises and had examined the phone calls that were received by the family members and had recorded their phone calls. They had also recorded statements of the family members of the petitioner on 11.10.2019. The record further reveals that the officers who had arrived on the previous day as well as the panchas were relieved by new set of officers and panchas and this cycle continued till 18.10.2019. It appears that thereafter they have been questioning the family members of the petitioner on a day to day basis till 18.10.2019.