Delay in Filing Appeal Condoned Due to Non-Formation of GSTAT Obstructing Assessee’s Right to Appeal

Case Details: Pramod Kumar Jaiswal v. State of West Bengal - [2024] 169 taxmann.com 488 (Calcutta)

Judiciary and Counsel Details

• Rajarshi Bharadwaj, J.
• Anil Kumar Dugar, Rajarshi Chatterjee, Somnath Balial, Govind Jethalia & Mrs Suman Sahani for the Petitioner.
• A. Ram, Md. T.M. Siddiqui, T. Chakraborty, S. Sanyal & S. Shaw for the Respondent.

Facts of the Case

The petitioner received a GST demand order under Section 73(9) of the CGST Act, 2017. Although the petitioner initially engaged an advocate to file an appeal within the prescribed time, the advocate failed to do so. A second advocate subsequently filed the appeal, but it was rejected on the grounds of limitation. Ih filed writ petition against order passed by the Appellate Authority for condonation of delay.

High Court Held

The High Court noted that the delay in filing the appeal was due to extenuating circumstances beyond the petitioner’s control and not due to deliberate inaction. It held that dismissing the appeal solely on the basis of delay, without considering its merits or procedural constraints, was legally untenable. Furthermore, the lack of access to the GST Appellate Tribunal, which was yet to be constituted, deprived the petitioner of a statutory right to a higher appeal.

Therefore, the Court quashed the order rejecting the appeal and directed the Appellate Authority to reconsider the application for condonation of delay on its merits and proceed to hear the appeal.

List of Cases Referred to

• Ram Krishna Mission Ashrama v. State of Bihar [2023] 154 taxmann.com 495/[2024] 101 GST 501/80 GSTL 173 (Patna) (para 9).