BNS Prosecution for Delayed GST/TDS Deposit Quashed

Case Details: Tanveer Asharaf vs. State of U.P. - [2026] 187 taxmann.com 1015 (Allahabad)

Judiciary and Counsel Details

Saurabh Srivastava, J.
Pankaj Kumar Gupta for the Applicant.

Facts of the Case

The applicant, a Gram Panchayat Secretary, was prosecuted under Section 316(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on allegations of delayed or non-deposit of GST/TDS deducted from payments relating to Gram Sabha development works during the financial year 2017-18. Following a complaint before the Lokayukta, an FIR was registered, a charge sheet was filed, and cognizance was taken under the BNS. The applicant contended that the amount had subsequently been deposited and that the allegations involved only delayed deposit of GST/TDS without any allegation of embezzlement, forgery or dishonest misappropriation. The applicant further challenged the prosecution on the ground that the GST Act constituted a complete code governing such contraventions and that the BNS could not be applied retrospectively to acts pertaining to 2017-18.

High Court Held

The High Court held that the GST Act is a complete and self-contained statute providing an exhaustive mechanism for adjudication, interest, penalty, prosecution and compounding in cases relating to delayed or non-deposit of GST or TDS. It was observed that, in the absence of allegations of embezzlement, forgery, dishonest misappropriation or wrongful gain, recourse to the general penal provisions of the BNS was legally unsustainable. The Court further held that the alleged acts pertained to the financial year 2017-18, whereas the prosecution had been initiated under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which was not in force at the relevant time. Accordingly, the charge sheet, cognizance order and criminal proceedings were quashed, while clarifying that the authorities were at liberty to proceed against the applicant under the provisions of the GST Act, if so advised.