Srinivasa Fertilisers And G G vs. Commissioner Of Central Tax

Held

The Court held that the present issue was squarely covered by previous orders of the High Court, specifically referencing W.P.No.3298 of 2019. The Court was satisfied that the petitioner's request merited consideration. Consequently, the Court directed the respondents to either open the portal to enable the petitioner to file Form GST TRAN-1 electronically or, in the alternative, to accept the Form GST TRAN-1 presented manually. This filing was to be completed on or before January 31, 2020. Following the submission, the petitioner's claim was to be processed in accordance with the law. The Court did not expressly leave any issue undecided.

Facts

The petitioner filed a writ petition seeking directions to submit Form GST TRAN-1 on the GSTN portal, or alternatively, to submit it manually and have the credit considered. The petitioner claimed they were unable to file TRAN-1 online due to technical glitches. The respondents argued that the petitioner did not provide evidence of a genuine attempt to file within the stipulated time. However, it was also noted that the deadline for filing TRAN-1 electronically had been extended. The petitioner countered that the GST system was in its initial phase, experiencing network failures, and that this situation was recognized by various High Courts.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioner should be allowed to submit Form GST TRAN-1 electronically or manually, considering the alleged technical glitches encountered during the transition to the GST regime, as per Section 140 of the CGST and APSGST Act, 2017? Petitioner's arguments: The petitioner contended that they were unable to file TRAN-1 due to technical glitches on the GSTN portal. They relied on an order from a Coordinate Bench of the High Court in W.P.No.3298 of 2019, arguing that their case was squarely covered by it. They further submitted that the GST system was in a trial and error phase, causing network and other failures, a situation acknowledged by various High Courts, thus their request for consideration was merited. Revenue's arguments: The revenue, represented by the Assistant Solicitor General, argued that the petitioner's own pleadings indicated an inability to file electronically and that no evidence, such as screenshots, was produced to demonstrate a genuine attempt to file TRAN-1 within the legal timeframe. However, they also acknowledged the extension of the deadline for filing TRAN-1 electronically until December 31, 2019.