Presumption of culpable mental state
Section 135, CGST Act
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Amendment history
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In one line
Section 135 raises a presumption of a culpable mental state (guilty intent) in a prosecution, which the accused must rebut.
What this means in practice
The parts that actually decide cases — the things a practitioner checks first.
The presumption of a culpable mental state shifts the burden to the accused, who must disprove it beyond reasonable doubt – a heavy burden.
The Supreme Court in Radhika Agarwal (27-02-2025) expressly left the constitutional challenge to this section open, so it remains arguable.
The exact words of the law
758 characters, uneditedReproduced from the CBIC text. We explain it above — but you should always be able to read it yourself.
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(i) the expression " culpable mental state " includes intention, motive, knowledge of a fact, and belief in, or reason to believe, a fact; (ii) a fact is said to be proved only when the court believes it to exist beyond reasonable doubt and not merely when its existence is established by a preponderance of probability.
High Court cases on this section
Judgments in our index that cite this provision. Being listed does not make a case good law — it may have been appealed or distinguished since. Read it before relying on it.
M/S BVM TRANS SOLUTIONS PRIVATE LIMITED v. COMMERCIAL TAX OFFICER
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M/S KASTURI UDYOG v. COMMERCIAL TAX OFFICER
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CLUSTER ENTERPRISES v. THE DEPUTY ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER (ST)-2
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What changed, and when
The amendment trail, newest first — because the version that applies to your case depends on the period.
2017-07-01 · Commenced
Provision as originally enacted in the CGST Act, 2017 (Act 12 of 2017) and brought into force w.e.f. 01-07-2017.
Where this comes from
Text reproduced from the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, as available on 2026-09-05. The explanation and practice notes above are GSTZone’s own, written for this hub. If you spot anything out of date, tell us and we’ll fix it — this hub is checked daily against CBIC.
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