Dhaneswar Sahoo vs. Union Of INDIA

Facts

The petitioner, Dhaneswar Sahoo, filed a writ petition before the Orissa High Court challenging an order/notice dated January 20, 2020, issued by an unspecified authority. The Opposite Parties were the Union of India and others, represented by the Additional Standing Counsel for C.T. & GST. The specific tax period and the amount in dispute were not recorded in the judgment. The procedural history leading to the writ petition was not detailed, other than the issuance of the impugned order/notice.

Held

The Court allowed the petitioner to withdraw the writ petition. The Court granted liberty to the petitioner to challenge the order/notice dated January 20, 2020, before the appropriate forum in accordance with the law, as provided in the statutory provisions. The Court further directed that if such an appeal is filed by August 9, 2021, along with an application for condonation of delay, it should be considered by the competent forum and disposed of in accordance with law. The petition was disposed of as withdrawn. No specific issues regarding GST provisions were decided on merits.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioner should be permitted to withdraw the writ petition with liberty to challenge the order/notice dated January 20, 2020, before the appropriate forum? The petitioner argued for withdrawal with liberty to pursue the statutory remedy. The revenue or State did not record any specific argument against this request in the judgment. The core issue revolved around allowing the petitioner to avail the statutory appeal mechanism after the writ petition was filed.