¹[Recovery of penalty by sale of goods or conveyance detained or seized in transit.- 144A. (1) Where the person transporting any goods or the owner of such goods fails to pay the amount of penalty under sub-section (1) of section 129 within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the copy of the order passed under sub-section (3) of the said section 129, the proper officer shall proceed for sale or disposal of the goods or conveyance so detained or seized by preparing an inventory and estimating the market value of such goods or conveyance:

Provided that where the detained or seized goods are perishable or hazardous in nature or are likely to depreciate in value with passage of time, the said period of fifteen days may be reduced by the proper officer.

(2) The said goods or conveyance shall be sold through a process of auction, including e-auction, for which a notice shall be issued in FORM GST DRC10 clearly indicating the goods or conveyance to be sold and the purpose of sale:

Provided that where the person transporting said goods or the owner of such goods pays the amount of penalty under sub-section (1) of section 129, including any expenses incurred in safe custody and handling of such goods or conveyance, after the time period mentioned in sub-rule (1) but before the issuance of notice under this sub-rule, the proper officer shall cancel the process of auction and release such goods or conveyance.

(3) The last day for submission of bid or the date of auction shall not be earlier than fifteen days from the date of issue of the notice referred to in sub-rule (2):

Provided that where the detained or seized goods are perishable or hazardous in nature or are likely to depreciate in value with passage of time, the said period of fifteen days may be reduced by the proper officer.

(4) The proper officer may specify the amount of pre-bid deposit to be furnished in the manner specified by such officer, to make the bidders eligible to participate in the auction, which may be returned to the unsuccessful bidders, forfeited in case the successful bidder fails to make the payment of the full amount, as the case may be.

(5) The proper officer shall issue a notice to the successful bidder in FORM GST DRC-11 requiring him to make the payment within a period of fifteen days from the date of auction:

Provided that where the detained or seized goods are perishable or hazardous in nature or are likely to depreciate in value with passage of time, the said period of fifteen days may be reduced by the proper officer.

(6) On payment of the full bid amount, the proper officer shall transfer the possession and ownership of the said goods or conveyance to the successful bidder and issue a certificate in FORM GST DRC-12.

(7) The proper officer shall cancel the process and proceed for re-auction where no bid is received or the auction is considered to be non-competitive due to lack of adequate participation or due to low bids.

(8) Where an appeal has been filed by the person under the provisions of subsection (1) read with sub-section (6) of section 107, the proceedings for recovery of penalty by sale of goods or conveyance detained or seized in transit under this rule shall be deemed to be stayed:

Provided that this sub-rule shall not be applicable in respect of goods of perishable or hazardous nature.]

Notes:

1. Inserted by the Central Goods and Services Tax (Tenth Amendment) Rules, 2021 Notification No. 40/2021 – Central Tax dated 29.12.2021 w.e.f 01.01.2022