Delhi High Court upholds GST search of advocate's office, limits privilege protection

The Delhi High Court dismissed a writ petition filed by an advocate challenging a GST Department search at his office premises and seizure of his CPU and documents. A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Shail Jain held that a lawful search under Section 67(2) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 remains valid even when conducted at an advocate's cabin, subject to protection of genuinely privileged communications and unrelated third-party client material.

The Court distinguished between privileged advocate-client communications and material concerning the advocate's own affairs or alleged participation in the investigation. It clarified that Section 132 of the Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 protects a client's ability to communicate candidly with their advocate, not an advocate's independent unlawful conduct. The bench also ruled that unrelated confidential information of other clients cannot be subjected to unrestricted examination, even when the search itself is valid.