Stoy Abraham vs. State Tax Officer
Held
The Court dismissed the writ petition, noting the petitioner's delay of almost three years in challenging the order without preferring an appeal. It rejected the argument about the order's upload location, stating no material was produced and the tab name itself indicated an order. The Court held that extraordinary remedy under Article 226 cannot be invoked after statutory appellate remedies are forgone and the limitation period expires.
Facts
The petitioner challenged an order dated 31.05.2022 issued under Section 73 of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 2017, imposing a liability for the financial year 2017-18. The petitioner sought to avail the benefit of Circular No.183/15/2022-GST, but filed the writ petition almost three years after the order, arguing it was uploaded in an 'additional notices and orders' tab.
Key Issues
Whether a writ petition under Article 226 can be entertained when statutory appellate remedies were not availed within the limitation period. Whether the petitioner's claim of delayed awareness due to the order being uploaded in an 'additional notices and orders' tab justifies the delay.
Sections Cited
Section 73
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
WP(C) NO. 11794 OF 2025 1 2025:KER:24881 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BECHU KURIAN THOMAS MONDAY, THE 24TH DAY OF MARCH 2025 / 3RD CHAITHRA, 1947 WP(C) NO. 11794 OF 2025 PETITIONER : STOY ABRAHAM AGED 50 YEARS XII/591, 592, KANJIRAM, POTTASSERI PO, PALAKKAD, PIN - 678591 BY ADVS. PADMANATHAN K.V. R.SREEJITH RESPONDENTS : 1 STATE TAX OFFICER MANNARKKAD, STATE GOODS AND SERVICES TAX DEPARTMENT, MINI CIVIL STATION, KODATHIPPADI, MANNARKKAD, PALAKKAD, PIN - 678582 2 THE DEPUTY/ ASSISTANT STATE TAX OFFICER TAXPAYER SERVICES CIRCLE MANNARKKAD, STATE GOODS AND SERVICES TAX DEPARTMENT, MINI CIVIL STATION, KODATHIPPADI, MANNARKKAD, PALAKKAD, PIN – 678 582 BY SMT.DR.THUSHARA JAMES, SENIOR GOVERNMENT PLEADER THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 24.03.2025, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
WP(C) NO. 11794 OF 2025 2 2025:KER:24881 BECHU KURIAN THOMAS, J. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- W.P.(C) No.11794 of 2025 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Da
The judgment continues below.
Read the full judgment
A free account opens 10 full GST judgments a month (one account works on both bharattax.net and this site). Re-reading one you have already opened does not count again.
The summary, the parties, the sections and the citations above are open to everyone and always will be. Only the text of the order and the PDF are metered.
Reproduced from the public record of the Kerala High Court. Verify against the court's own copy before relying on it. Income tax judgments are on bharattax.net.