M/S Sri Laxmi Enterprise, Angul vs. The Commissioner, GST And Central Excise, Rourkela

Held

The Court held that the Petitioner should be permitted to file a statutory appeal on the basis of the copy of the impugned order provided by the Recovery Officer. The Court reasoned that the circumstances under which the Petitioner had not yet received the certified copy, despite requests, would be considered by the Appellate Authority. The Court granted the Petitioner liberty to file the statutory appeal not later than 2nd January, 2023, accompanied by an application for condonation of delay, explaining the delay due to the pendency of the writ petition. The Appellate Authority was directed to consider this explanation in accordance with law. The Court declined to interfere with the impugned order at this stage.

Facts

The petitioner, M/s. Sri Laxmi Enterprise, challenged an order dated 29th March, 2022, passed by the Additional Commissioner of Central Tax, GST & CX Commissionerate, Rourkela. The petitioner stated that the order was appealable but that despite repeated requests, a certified copy had not been provided. The petitioner explained the circumstances under which it was awaiting the certified copy. The Court was informed that the petitioner had received a copy of the impugned order from the Recovery Officer, which was attached to the writ petition.

Key Issues

1. Whether the Petitioner can be permitted to file a statutory appeal on the basis of a copy of the impugned order provided by the Recovery Officer, given the delay in obtaining a certified copy from the issuing authority? The Petitioner argued that they were unable to file a statutory appeal due to the non-receipt of the certified copy of the impugned order, despite repeated requests, and that they had obtained a copy from the Recovery Officer. The Revenue did not record any specific arguments in the judgment.