M/S. Sri Chakra Motors vs. Union Of INDIA
Held
The Court held that it is open to the petitioner, in terms of Notification No. 48/2018 and the subsequent Order No. 4/2018-GST, to seek a recommendation from the GST Council for the submission of FORM GST TRAN-I within the extended timeframe stipulated in the order dated September 17, 2018. The petitioner must satisfy the concerned authorities that their attempts to file FORM GST TRAN-I on December 27, 2017, failed due to system errors or server-related issues. The Court did not make a specific finding on whether the failure was indeed due to technical glitches but provided a procedural path for the petitioner to pursue their claim. The ratio decidendi is that eligible taxpayers facing technical difficulties in filing TRAN-I within the original deadline can seek relief through the extended provisions introduced by the government, provided they can substantiate their claim of technical failure to the relevant authorities.
Facts
The petitioners in both Writ Petitions sought a mandamus directing the respondents to reopen the portal or accept TRAN-I Forms filed manually, and to rectify the GST tax return uploading system. The Department of Revenue, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, amended Rule 117 of the CGST Rules by inserting Clause (1A) and a proviso to Rule 117(4)(b)(iii) through Notification No. 48/2018 dated September 10, 2018. This amendment allowed the Commissioner, on the GST Council's recommendation, to extend the deadline for submitting TRAN-I Form electronically beyond March 31, 2019, for registered persons facing technical difficulties on the common portal. Subsequently, the Commissioner (GST) issued Order No. 4/2018-GST on September 17, 2018, extending the period for submitting TRAN-I Forms until January 31, 2019, for such eligible registered persons.
Key Issues
1. Whether the petitioners are entitled to a direction for the reopening of the GST portal or manual acceptance of their TRAN-I Forms due to alleged technical difficulties encountered on December 27, 2017? (Mixed question of law and fact, turning on the interpretation and application of Rule 117 of the CGST Rules, as amended). Petitioner's contention: The petitioner argued that they were unable to upload their TRAN-I Form due to technical glitches or server errors on the specified date and sought permission to make a representation to the GST Council to examine this failure. The petitioner relied on the subsequent amendment to Rule 117 and the Commissioner's order extending the filing period. Revenue's contention: The revenue, represented by the learned Senior Standing Counsel, did not explicitly record any arguments against the petitioner's plea but consented to the disposal of the writ petitions at the admission stage.
Sections Cited
Rule 117, Rule 117(1A), Rule 117(4)(b)(iii)
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAMESH RANGANATHAN AND THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE D.V.S.S.SOMAYAJULU WRIT PETITION NOs.30501 AND 31714 OF 2018 COMMON ORDER: {Per the Hon’ble Sri Justice Ramesh Ranganathan} Heard Sri M.V.K.Moorthy, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri B.Narasimha Sarma, learned Senior Standing Counsel for CGST and Customs and, with their consent, both the Writ Petitions are disposed of at the stage of admission. In both these Writ Petitions, a mandamus is sought to direct the respondents to reopen the portal or to accept the TRAN-I Form filed manually and to rectify the GST tax return uploading system by software. The Department of Revenue, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India issued notification No.48/2018 dated 10.09.2018 amending Rule 117 of CGST Rules and inserted Clause (1A) thereto. It further inserted a proviso to Rule 117(4)(b)(iii). The amended Rule 117(1A) and the proviso to Rule 117(4)(b)(iii) read thus:
“Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-rule (1), the Commissioner may, on the recommendations of the Council, extend the date for submitting the declaration electronically in FORM G
The judgment continues below.
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